Student Profiles

Phitsamay Sychitkokhong, Culture, Communities, and Education

Phitsamay Sychitkokhong, a third year doctoral student, focuses her research on the educational experiences of Lao American students. She participates in the following organizations: Harvard Educational Review, AOCC (Alumni of Color Conference) steering committee, Asian Pacific American Alliance, Southeast Asian Coaltion for Awareness and the Harvard-wide Southeast Asian Studies Group, and has served as a Teaching Fellow for Mark Warren's Education Organizing course. She has been involved with the Community Schools and School Improvement Research Project with Mark Warren and the Southeast Asian Americans in Education Project with the Harvard Civil Rights Project.

What did you do before you came to the GSE?

I was an elementary school teacher in Long Beach, CA, literacy specialist in Brookline, MA, a project consultant for the Southeast Asian Resource Action Center and a development coordinator for a non-profit youth organization called Coalition for Asian Pacific American Youth in Boston, MA. I currently teach Southeast Asians in America at UMass Boston and Culture, Identity, and the Asian American Experience at Boston College. I also work as a diversity trainer for the Anti-Defamation League in their World of Difference program.

Comments on the coursework?

Some outstanding courses I took were John Willett's Applied Data Analysis, Vivian Louie's Asian Americans and Education, and Vanessa Fong's Psychological Anthropology.

What is your research question?

My research question is: "What is the educational experience of Lao American students?" What factors affect their high school graduation rate or drop-out rate? What role does the Lao American community play in these students educational outcomes? How do these Lao American students compare to other Southeast Asian American students?

What is your career goal?

My career goal is to be able to teach Southeast Asian American studies courses with a focus on education. I would also like to teach diversity issues in a teacher education program and continue researching Asian American students' experiences.