Chinese Student Organization Founded By Best Friends, Terris and Phillip

According to Swem archives documentation, it appears that the club was active from 1989-1990. In 1990, the club organized “A Cultural Celebration” held in the Phi Beta Kappa memorial hall featuring a Chinese Dance and Opera performance by The Patomac Arts Group of Washington D.C.

Terris and Phillip are both Taiwanese American. Terris was raised in the suburbs of New Jersey, and Phillip was born and raised in Taiwan and immigrated to Vienna, Virginia when he was 15 years old. 

Terris and Phillip met during their freshman year and started the Chinese Student Organization in 1993.

For Phillip, he felt like he was acquainted with every single Asian person at W&M.

“I felt like we were the first ones [Asian American students at W&M]. Well, there were very few at a time…at least from my vantage point, there were no Chinese American or Taiwanese American organizations of any sort…so Terris and I hung out with the Korean American Student Association. I just, you know, hung out with them. And that was maybe the impetus, at least for me to do something.”

Moreover, Terris and Phillip recall a heightened interest in Chinese language and politics during the mid-nineties, especially as the Chinese language program at W&M was just starting up. 

They realized people were interested in having a club specifically focused on Chinese culture when they helped organize a lantern festival for the Lunar new year. 

Terris recalls the lantern festival as one of the first events they planned in coordination with the Reeves center. 

“I think one of the first events we did, and I don't know if you can find it in the archives anywhere…was like the lantern festival…And that was like a big bang for CSO coming out of the day, which we did together with Reeves…We were just, you know, finding people to come and teach them how to make lanterns for the lantern festival. And, you know, like, like, over 100 people came.

“…it just went to show that, okay, there was potentially this kind of interest in learning more different parts of not just our culture, but other cultures. I think that informed the way we looked at CSO going forward.”

Even though Terris founded the Chinese Student Organization at W&M, he didn’t consider his race until after college.

“[I] actually grew up in the suburbs of New Jersey, whereas, you know, even less Asian population density than then W&M had.. And I remember very distinctly, the first time I realized, oh, wait, I'm Asian. And this was sometime like after college. 

“Back in New York in Flushing, where [it’s predominantly] Asian, Korean, Chinese, Taiwanese, things like that…It was very crowded and I had run into a white guy. And then he was not very happy about it. But he ran into me, but then he was not very happy. But it started kind of, you know, talking about race and racial slurs, things like that. And the first time I realized, oh, he sees me as an Asian person…it never really occurred to me until that moment.”

Terris later moved to Taiwan and is working in the film industry to show the world Taiwanese stories, which helped him further his understanding of race and culture.

“But yeah, then coming back to Taiwan, and having the chance to be exposed to you know, just more of this. Because, in college as an anthropology major, cultural anthropology, a lot of focus for me was on Japan. But it was all very academic, you know, it wasn't like, you know, you were there in Japan, or Taiwan, and really being exposed or interacting with the culture, everything was like, ‘Oh, look how different Japan is.’ But then coming back here, it really kind of highlighted a lot of those differences and made me think a lot more about these issues [of race].”

For both Terris and Phillip, CSO was just another activity they did for fun and to get their friends together. Phillip stated, “it [CSO] was a lot less of a statement or any sort of political purpose or even sort of career advancement purpose.” Terris also mentioned that, for him, “[CSO] is just kind of about sharing, and it's not about taking a stand for identity.”

While Terris and Phillip didn’t consider the organization to deal with issues regarding race and identity, they do recall one student who was struggling with their race and identity named Sean (Sean is a pseudonym).

Phillip recalls how Sean was “almost at the brink of some sort of depression or nervous breakdown” regarding his identity. 

The question that Phillip recalls Sean was struggling with is one that many Asian Americans often consider for themselves. For Sean, the question was, 

“Am I Taiwanese or am I American?”

Phillip and Terris noted that the social and political landscape at the time was much different than it is now. For example, they could only connect to the internet at Swem, they didn’t get their first email address until their freshman year at W&M, and the notion of political correctness was just emerging. Information was not widely accessible, and the mainstream information available certainly didn’t center Asian Americans. 

Looking back, Phillip stated, “I think in some ways, he was really ahead of his time.” 

Chinese Student Organization Fliers, 1994-1996

Terris and Phillip founded the Chinese Student Organization in 1993 and served as the organization’s first presidents. They remain great friends to this day. 

The Chinese Student Organization continues to be active, serving as a space for Asian American students to engage with and share their culture. 

Sources:

1. CARES - College Partnership, Special Collections Research Center, William & Mary Libraries.

2. Chang, Phillip and Terris Ko interviewed by author on February 1, 2023.

3. Ko, T. "Chinese Student Organization." Colonial Echo, p. 238, 1993.