Asian American Center

Awards and Recognitions

Every year during our annual Inspir(Asian) banquet students are selected to receive the Nobuko Saito Cleary Trailblazer Award, Helen Zia Award for Leadership Award, Ronald Takaki Award for Community Engagement Award, and the AAC Student Engagement Award.

Nobuko Saito Cleary Trailblazer Award

The Nobuko Saito Cleary Trailblazer Award is designated annually for two Northeastern undergraduate students. Through positive leadership, advocacy, and innovative ideas, these students enrich the experience of other Asian American students and promote the goals of the Asian American Center.

Recipients of this award demonstrate a commitment to Northeastern’s Asian American student community on the Boston campus and beyond. Candidates help create programming, develop events, and build engagement. Any undergraduate students in their second year of study or beyond who are enrolled during the current academic year are eligible to apply.

The Trailblazer Award is named for Nobuko Saito Cleary, who graduated from Northeastern’s English program in 1970 and is likely the first Japanese woman to earn a degree from the university. She launched her company, Cross-Cultural Communications, in 1985, where she specializes in developing business relationships primarily between the United States and Japan. A self-described cultural bridge builder, Cleary is the founding donor of Northeastern’s Asian American Center, and previously served on the former Corporation of the university.

Nobuko Saito Cleary Trailblazer Award Recipients

2024: Emily Huang, Amy Tey
2023: Noor Mehta, Saren Nonoyama

Helen Zia Award for Leadership

The Helen Zia Award for Leadership is given to a graduating undergraduate student who has demonstrated positive leadership and initiative in promoting the development of the Asian American student community through advocacy work, programming, or involvement in key initiatives at Northeastern. This student has an awareness of what it means to be a leader in the Asian American community and has grown as a leader during their experiences at Northeastern. Nominations should include specific examples of the nominee’s leadership capacity, beyond simply implementing programs on campus.

Helen Zia is a Chinese American journalist, author, and activist who has been advocating against racism and hate crimes that affected the Asian American community. Her activist work has served to strengthen and build coalitions among various Asian American cultural backgrounds. She published many works and is known for her book Asian American Dreams: The Emergence of an American People.

Helen Zia Award for Leadership Recipients

2024: Krista Caasi
2023: Thao-Vy Le
2022: Brianna Ku
2021: Eva Chiu
2020: Megan Lau
2018: Liane Wong
2017: Jelina Marie Castillo
2016: Rohini Venkatesan
2015: Cung Tran
2014: Quynh Anh Le
2013: Richie Huynh
2012: Andy Huang
2011: Jennifer Cheng
2010: Amrita Chabria
2009: Franco Solleza
2008: Laura Tolentino

Ronald Takaki Award for Community Engagement

This award is given to a graduating undergraduate student who has demonstrated significant commitments to the Asian American community on or beyond campus. This student has not only been involved in the Asian American community but has taken the initiative to become more engaged in bringing visibility and voice to the experiences of Asian Americans.

The recipient of this award will have demonstrated an evolving awareness of the Asian American community and an ongoing commitment to the Asian American community. Nominations should include specific examples of the nominee’s engagement with the Asian American community, whether specifically at Northeastern or in the Boston area.

Ronald Takaki was an American historian, author, pioneer, and legend in ethnic studies. He was known for making it his life’s work to rewrite American history to include Asian-Americans and other ethnic groups excluded from traditional accounts and who helped start the first doctoral program in ethnic studies in the United States. He published many works including the famous Strangers from a Different Shore: A History of Asian Americans, and A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America.

Ronald Takaki Award for Community Engagement Recipients

2024: Eileen Lee
2023: Andrea Koid
2022: Elaine Zhang
2021: Anisa Anuar
2020: Winnie Nguy
2018: Kelly Chia
2017: Stephanie Lock
2016: Deanna Wong
2015: Susan Ng
2014: Erickson Maala
2013: Thien Nguyen
2012: Priyanka Raval
2011: Cindy Wong
2010: Jaime Siochi
2009: Angelia Ly
2008: Katherine Hou

AAC Student Engagement Award

This award is given to student(s) who have demonstrated a commitment to engaging the Northeastern Asian American community through advocacy, programming, support services, or involvement in key initiatives that promote the goals of the Asian American Center. The recipient(s) of this award must demonstrate this commitment to student engagement during the academic year it is awarded. Eligibility: Any 2nd year or above NU undergraduate student.

Student Engagement Award Recipients

2024: Aaron Fu, Joseph Labrador
2023: Kevin Hu, Jocelyn Ju
2022: Atharva Gawde, Emiko Armstrong
2021: Francesca Mei, Elise Chan
2020: Thomas Cotugno, Anisa Anuar
2018: Melissa de Leon, Eunji Kim
2017: Anoushka Barpujari, Eesha Ramanujam
2016: Henry Ca, Celine Chin
2015: Liane Wong