The Asian American Studies Student Association hosted an Asian American fair Tuesday to honor Asian Pacific American Heritage Month.

“We simply haven’t done ananything like this before,” said Stephanie Mar, director of Public Relations for A.A.S.S.A. “(We wanted to) make it a bigger thing and more visible (than our previous events).”

The fair was held from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on the lawn area near Magnolia Walk and the Student Services Building.

The event’s focus was to celebrate the reopening of the Asian House, and to let students know the house is open to students and the community, said Michael Ramos, A.A.S.S.A. president.

The event featured work by Asian artists, as well as performances by Professor Steven Ropp’s theatre class, and by the group Taiko, named after the Japanese drumming style by the same name.

A.A.S.S.A. received $4,000 from Associated Students, and contributions from the local community to fund the event, Ramos said.

Students of Ropp and Glenn Omatsu participated in the fair as part of their class curriculum.

Omatsu’s students participated in the carnival games, offering an educational ball toss, Chinese calligraphy, painting, fortune telling and origami.

The fair also featured cultural dances by members of the Filipino American Student Association, and by FasMode, a dance team specializing in several forms of dance.

Asian American Studies professor Maria Turnmeyer and her students performed a skit, and F.A.S.A. members performed a National Philippine Dance called tinikling.

“I think everyone benefits from diversity,” said Jake Prendez, Chicano/a studies graduate student who attended the event.

Asian American students and the community benefit by knowing there’s a community at CSUN that they can be involved in, said Prendez.

There was also a tsunami relief raffle to raise funds to aid its victims.

“We should lend them a hand,” said Ramos. “(After all the publicity), they still need our help.”

Students had a chance to win an iPod Shuffle, two tickets to Magic Mountain, or a Starbucks gift card when they gave donations.

Correction

The May 12 article ?Asian American fair honors Asian Pacific American Heritage month,? incorrectly stated that Prof. Steven Ropp?s theater class performed at the event. Ropp does not teach a theater class. Also, the event?s focus was not to celebrate the reopening of the Asian House. This took place one year ago.