Asian Pacific American Student Services (APASS) is a department within the Division of Student Affairs that offers an array of programming designed to educate and empower students. We strive to create unique learning opportunities that include leadership development, advocacy, and community involvement. We understand the distinctive needs among the different ethnicities within our Asian Pacific American community, and we succeed in deriving strength from our diversity. We believe in a pan-Asian Pacific American identity that is rooted in the Civil Rights Movement, and continues to grow in the transnational sphere.
Sumun L. Pendakur, Ed.D.
Director
Dr. Sumun L. Pendakur is the Director of the Asian Pacific American Student Services (APASS) department at the University of Southern California. Pendakur is a graduate of Northwestern University with a double major in Women’s Studies and History and a Minor in Spanish. She holds an M.A. in Higher Education Administration from the University of Michigan. In December of 2010, she received her doctorate in Higher Education Leadership from the USC Rossier School of Education. Her dissertation is titled: The Search for Transformative Agents: The Counter-Institutional Positioning of Faculty and Staff at an Elite University.
Pendakur has played many roles – as a student activist in the struggle for Asian American Studies; as a campus-wide diversity educator; and as a Student Affairs professional deeply interested in issues of access and equity. Through her work at APASS, she serves as an advocate for APA community issues, in addition to offering leadership development, mentoring, and community engagement/empowerment programs. She also engages in cross-cultural program development and institutional advocacy. In the past, Sumun has worked with low income, first generation college students and as a union organizer.
Pendakur is active in the community and serves on the Board of Directors for the South Asian Network, a major grassroots human and civil rights non-profit in Southern California. She is also a member of the External Advisory Committee for the Santa Monica College Asian American & Pacific Islander Achievement Project (AAPIA). On campus, Sumi has served as the Co-Chair of the Student Affairs Strategic Planning Implementation Group and as the Co-Chair of the 2009 Student Recognition Awards. She currently serves on the USC Spectrum Advisory Board, as an SJACS Advisor, as an active member of the Faculty/Staff LGBT Ally program, and as an advisor to a number of student organizations. She is also involved with professional organizations such as NASPA, ACPA, and NCORE, having held leadership positions and presented at national conferences on a regular basis. Sumun was the 2005-06 Co-Chair of APINCORE (the NCORE API Caucus). In 2007, Pendakur received the LGBT Service Award for outstanding dedication and commitment to the USC LGBT community. In 2010, Pendakur and colleagues won the NASPA Gold Excellence Award in the Multicultural and Inclusion category for the creation of Project ReMiX (a year-round program exploring issues of multiraciality and building a multiracial/mixed community at USC). In 2011, she won the USC Remarkable Women Award and the USC Rossier School of Education Dissertation of the Year Award.
Jade K. Agua
Assistant Director
Jade K. Agua serves as the Assistant Director for USC Asian Pacific American Student Services. Originally from San Jose, California, Jade Agua graduated from USC in 2005 with a B.A. in Sociology. She is currently pursuing her M.A. in Public Administration at the USC School of Policy, Planning, and Development.
During her time on campus as an undergraduate, Jade held many leadership positions including President of Troy Philippines and Assembly Chair of Asian Pacific American Student Assembly (APASA). After graduation, Jade worked at community-based organization Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics, Inc. (LEAP) until November 2007 when she left her position as Community Program Manager.
Since moving to Los Angeles, Jade has been involved in a variety of community-based and nonprofit organizations including interning at FilAm ARTS and Curatorial Assistance Traveling Exhibitions (CATE). Jade had also volunteered as a Vendor Coordinator for the Festival of Philippine Arts & Culture (FPAC), as a docent at the Chinese American Museum (CAM), and at Search to Involve Pilipino Americans (SIPA) in various capacities. Jade has also served on the LEAP Silent Auction Committee and as a reader for the Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund.
Back on campus as staff since December 2007, Jade is a key member of the Student Affairs Assessment Committee and Student Recognition Awards Program Committee.
Jeymi Choi
Office Manager
Jeymi Choi is the Office Manager of the Asian Pacific American Student Services (APASS) department at USC. Choi is a graduate of University of California, Riverside with a B.A. in Business Administration. She received her M.Ed. in Post-Secondary Administration and Student Affairs from the USC Rossier School of Education.
