United Asian Services of Wisconsin, Inc.
Charting a new path for Asians in
Wisconsin
by Laura Salinger
|
communities.
Koua Vang was recently hired as the organization's new head and will lead United Asian Services as it embarks on its
mission to become a resource for all Asian communities in south central Wisconsin. They have lofty goals, including the
development of an Asian cultural and historical center.
"Our vision now is to be an Asian organization," Vang said. "I really hope we can unite all the Asian communities together."
United Asian Services of Wisconsin was founded in 1984 by Asian refugees of Lao, Hmong, and Cambodian descent in order
to assist refugees as they resettled in Wisconsin. They helped with a gamut of resettlement issues including housing,
education, health care, employment, and language. Today, they still provide these services, but hope to branch out and become
a broader resource for Asian Americans throughout Dane County.
"Originally, the primary goal was to help refugees settle in Wisconsin," Vang said. "When more and more refugees became
citizens, we changed our direction."
Koua Vang is a former refugee himself and has witnessed the shift in problems faced by refugee and former refugee
populations. As Hmong, Lao, and Cambodian populations become more entrenched in the community, they face less
immediate problems such as lack of housing and healthcare, yet still face barriers when it comes to issues of employment and
education. United Asian Services of Wisconsin provides programs to address these issues. Their employment program helps
families acquire the job skills necessary to obtain and retain employment. Simultaneously, their Key States Initiative and
Targeted Assistance Discretionary Employment Enhancement programs help welfare recipients get off and stay off public
assistance by providing job placement assistance. United Asian Service's Freeman Foundation Grant program helps
participants access ESL classes, job readiness training, and educational opportunities. Additional services at UASW include
assistance with transportation, translation, referrals, advocacy, community outreach, and emergency services.
While still retaining established programs, newer programs at United Asian Services will focus more on the Asian
population's adjustment to life in the U.S., their well-being, and preservation of cultural traditions. After immediate relocation
needs are met, former refugees are still left to navigate an unfamiliar culture.
"Our mentality in America is different," Vang said. "This is a very individualistic society. Culture is different, family structure is
different, and the working environment is different."
Vang himself made the difficult transition into American culture years before when his family came to these shores from a
refugee camp in Thailand. From a very tender age, Vang's life was in flux. He grew up in the Laotian city of Lon Cheng, but spent
much of his childhood on the run. At the age of 12, his family was evacuated to Thailand.
"When we landed in Thailand, everything changed," Vang recalled. "The language changed, the culture changed."
Vang's family spent five years at a Thai refugee camp until they were finally accepted into U.S. borders. He lived in Chicago
with his family, until he was offered a home with a White couple in a small Pennsylvanian town. It was yet another transition for
Vang.
"In Chicago, there were so many multicultural communities," he said. "When I went to live with an American family in a small
city north of Pittsburgh, there were no Asians."
Although he was an outsider, Vang managed to make the most of his situation and was able to go on to college (something
that many of his counterparts at the time were unable to do). Vang attended St. Vincent College until transferring to the University
of Alaska-Fairbanks where he finished his undergraduate degree. He then attended law school at Williamette University in
Salem, Oregon. Armed with a law degree, he returned to the Midwest.
"After graduating from law school, my intention was to help my people," he said. /Now, Vang is in the precise position he once
sought; a position where he can use his experience and skills to help Southeast Asian and Asian communities in the Madison
area. As United Asian Services of Wisconsin moves forward in a new direction, Vang will be a crucial player in determining the
future of this changing organization.
United Asian Services of Wisconsin, Inc. (formerly the United Refugee Services of
Wisconsin) is heading in a new direction. Armed with a new name and a new
executive director, the organization is switching its focus from helping new refugees
(a population that is slowly dwindling as large influxes of refugee populations gain
citizenship) and instead focusing on uniting all Asian communities. Their focus is on
improving the quality of life for Asian American communities in Dane County, while
preserving the varying, unique cultural attributes of these