Ray Pun: Interview with Dr. Varaxy Yi
Varaxy Yi is an assistant professor of Educational Leadership at the Kremen School of Education and Human Development at California State University, Fresno. She is a Khmer American woman and child of refugees. She is a first-generation college student and faculty. She conducts research to advance equity, access, and opportunity for historically underserved communities, such as racially minoritized, Southeast Asian American, and refugee populations. Her dissertation was a phenomenological exploration of the racialized experiences of Southeast Asian American community college students. She earned her doctorate in Higher Education from the University of Denver and holds a master’s in Library and Information Science from San Jose State. She is a Gates Millennium Scholars alumna.
Ray: Thank you so much for agreeing to be interviewed. Can you tell us about your current work and research projects?
Varaxy: I am currently an assistant professor of educational leadership at California State University, Fresno. I just completed my second year on the tenure track. I also serve as the coordinator of our Higher Education Administration and Leadership master’s program and am a core faculty member in the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership. I enjoy working with and supporting graduate students interested in careers in higher education and student affairs. I especially enjoy the opportunity to work with such a diverse student population in the Central Valley. Many of our students are first-generation college students from racially minoritized communities. I am also a faculty affiliate for the National Institute for Transformation and Equity.
I am currently working on finalizing manuscripts from my dissertation this summer. In the past two years since finishing, I focused on finalizing various research projects that I’ve been fortunate enough to be involved in. These include collecting stories from Burmese and Bhutanese refugee communities in Colorado and researching the ways postsecondary institutions undergo a change process in diversity and equity. As I complete these projects, I am thinking about where I will turn my attention to pursuing a research agenda that honors my goals of increasing knowledge of the contributions of Southeast Asian American communities.
R: You were a librarian before becoming a teaching faculty. What made you consider that route? Did you find the transition to be relatively smooth and/or difficult?
V: I did spend a few years in the library world while earning my MLIS from San Jose State University. I developed experience in a variety of library settings such as academic and medical libraries through short-term stints. I worked with ITT Technical Institute in the Bay Area and realized the academic space. During that time, I took on leadership roles with LIS student organizations and supported the Asian Pacific American Librarians Association (APALA).
I am also a Gates Millennium Scholar, and so I always knew that I would continue to pursue a doctoral degree because I had the funding and the support. I considered a doctoral degree in library and information science; however, I attended a conference in Washington, D.C., and realized that higher education was where I wanted to be. I took the chance and left my full-time position to move to the University of Hawaii at Manoa for a doctoral program. Then, I moved to the University of Denver with my advisor. While I pursued my degree, I took on reference desk assistant positions to help supplement my studies. It was also a great opportunity to maintain and hone my library and reference skills.
The transition has been relatively smooth. These fields are not dissimilar. I still use my library skills as a faculty and researcher. I also take the opportunity to help build students’ information literacy skills as well, so I haven’t fully stepped away from the library world. I enjoy being a library advocate and hope to find other opportunities to support librarianship at Fresno State.
R: Your dissertation research on historically underrepresented and marginalized populations in higher education, particularly the racialized experiences of Southeast Asian American community college students, is very timely and critical. Can you tell us more about it and what were some surprising findings you uncovered?
V: My dissertation is titled, A Phenomenological Inquiry into the Racialized Experiences of Southeast Asian American Community College Students. I made the transition to the study of higher education because I was interested in increasing knowledge about the Southeast Asian American student population and in exploring how colleges can better serve their needs. My overarching goal is to increase equity and access for racially minoritized populations. In the dissertation, I interviewed ten students. I had the opportunity to listen to their stories and learn about all the ways they were navigating a challenging education system. I’m working on disseminating the findings via publications; however, some relevant findings are that Southeast Asian American community college students experience isolation in school based on the ways peers and faculty racialize them. They also experience difficulties seeking help and support. Stay tuned for more papers.
R: Do you have any recommendations or advice to fellow librarians of color, particularly women of color, about considering different career paths outside of librarianship?
V: We need more women of color in both librarianship and other fields. I believe there is a place for all of us to contribute important knowledge and perspectives to improve various disciplines. I would recommend that WOC seek out collectivist spaces with other WOC who share similar values as them. These spaces have been the most fulfilling spaces and havens from the toxicity that is prevalent in both academia and other fields that are built on systemic oppression of minoritized folks. We know that these spaces are not made for people of color and so seeking out spaces of refuge is an important strategy. I have various spaces where I have built honest, authentic relationships with WOC, where I can reflect on my daily experiences of struggle. One of these spaces is the Southeast Asian American Scholars (SEAAsters) Collective. We are a group of Southeast Asian American women in academia. We are committed to uplifting each other in ways that do not reaffirm competition or scarcity. Rather, we lean into our collectivistic cultures and uplift each other to collaborate and do important work together. Whatever career path you pursue, finding these spaces are critical for success. Mostly, I just feel most pursuits, even careers, are most fruitful when you’re doing it together with others so you can bounce ideas and share resources.
R: During this time, how do you center yourself and maintain work/life balance?
V: I maintain virtual connections with my SEAAsters and other friends and colleagues. I am teaching from home this summer and am expecting to teach virtually as well. I’m grateful that I have already built a Zoom social life because my research team has been in various time zones. The transition was smooth. It’s certainly not the same as being in the same space as folks, but it’s been good to be connected. We also engage in virtual writing sessions. Sometimes we just meet and work together in silence on camera. That has helped alleviate the sense of loneliness.
I also try to create boundaries between my work and home time. I try not to work on the weekends and too much in the evenings. It’s not perfect, but these boundaries help me stay focused. It helps to have other things to do outside of work. I’ve been journaling in the morning and just finding some time to be in my own mental and emotional space. I’ve also been taking more walks and committed to moving my body more.
