ABOUT US
The Union of Vietnamese Student Associations of the Gulf Coast, also known as Tổng Hội Sinh Viên Việt Nam Miền Vùng Vịnh Gulf Coast, was formed on April 1st, 2014 by five individuals who wanted to bring more cultural awareness and bring bonding between Vietnamese student associations in the Gulf Coast region.
OUR MISSION
The Union of Vietnamese Student Associations of the Gulf Coast, a nonprofit, nonpartisan, community-based organization, was founded in 2014 as a means for Vietnamese youth organizations from across the Gulf Coast United States to network with one another, share common resources, and collaborate on philanthropy projects. UVSA Gulf Coast is committed to empowering emerging youth leaders within the Vietnamese community in the Gulf Coast region of the United States. Also it shall maintain and promote the Vietnamese culture. Servicing the Vietnamese-American community in the Gulf Coast region, UVSA Gulf Coast works as an umbrella organization and collaborates with individual student associations and other related Vietnamese community-related organizations to conduct events and projects
MAJOR MILESTONES
April 1, 2014: UVSA Gulf Coast Founded
UVSA Gulf Coast is founded by five passionate leaders within the VSA community of the Gulf Coast region. These five individuals served a two-year term.
President Laura Siu, UNO Alum
Internal Vice President Tong Nguyen, LSU Alum
External Vice President / CORR Representative Tyler Tran, LSU Alum
Treasurer Cecilia Tran, MSU Alum
Secretary/PR Victoria Tran, LOYNO Alum
June 27, 2014: First Presidents' Retreat
UVSA Gulf Coast establishes its first Presidents' Retreat in Pass Christian, MS. VSA Presidents within the region were invited to attend a weekend together and prepare for their upcoming terms by going through workshops facilitated by UVSA Gulf Coast's Executive Board.
May 29, 2015: Second Presidents' Retreat
UVSA Gulf Coast hosted its second annual Presidents' Retreat, this time hosted at Fort Walton Beach, FL. Presidents were once again hosted to a weekend full of leadership workshops to prepare them for their upcoming terms.
February 19, 2016: Gulf Coast Tet
UVSA Gulf Coast hosted our first regional Tet event at Loyola University New Orleans, organized by the UVSA Gulf Coast Executive Board and the ten VSA presidents within the region. Each VSA hosted a booth that contained games and/or food, and live entertainment kept the night lively throughout. A portion of the proceeds from each booth went to that year's Collective Philanthropy Project - Kids Without Borders.
March 14, 2016: Garden Grove Mayor Visits NOLA
UVSA Gulf Coast co-hosted a Vietnamese in leadership Q&A event alongside VAYLA and XULAVA, featuring Garden Grove Mayor Bao Nguyen and Former Louisiana Congressman Joseph Cao. Mr. Nguyen and Mr. Cao are the first Vietnamese mayor and congressman in the United States, respectively. The event took place at Xavier University of Louisiana.
April 24, 2016: First Gulf Coast Awards
UVSA Gulf Coast hosted its first regional end of the year banquet to honor and recognize the achievements of the various VSAs within the region. The banquet took place at Chopstix Buffet in Gretna, LA.
May 1, 2016: Second E-Board is Elected
UVSA Gulf Coast officially elects its new Executive Board members for the 2016-2018 term.
President Kent Tong, LOYNO Alum
Internal Vice President Mitchell Nguyen, LSU Alum
External Vice President Thanh-Thanh Pham, LSU Alum
Treasurer Tony Nguyen, USA Student
Secretary Lina Huynh, UL Student
July 15, 2016: Leadership Retreat Three
The newly-elected UVSA Gulf Coast Executive Board hosted its first event - the third annual Presidents' Retreat, renamed Leadership Retreat. Starting this year, the event was open to both VSA Presidents and Intercollegiate Council Representatives.
October 22, 2016: Date Auction
Date Auction is an annual charity fundraising event originally hosted by the Asian American Student Intercollegiate Association (AASIA) for the past fifteen years before transitioning under UVSA Gulf Coast this year. The six Louisiana ICC representatives worked alongside UVSA Gulf Coast's Internal Vice President to organize and host this annual event. This successful event raised over $16,000 for the year's Collective Philanthropy Project - The Catalyst Foundation.
March 18, 2017: Cultural Night
UVSA Gulf Coast hosted its second annual Tet event, renamed Cultural Night. The ICC representatives and UVSA Gulf Coast Internal Vice President organized and hosted this event at St. Joseph Catholic Church in New Orleans, LA. Once again the night was filled with live performances, such as singers, dancers, and poetry; fun booths with interactive games; and delicious food, like pandan waffles, shaken beef, and boba tea!
July 20, 2017: UNAVSA-14 Unlock the Present
In collaboration with UNAVSA, UVSA Gulf Coast host UNAVSA-14: Unlock the Present conference in New Orleans, LA. UVSA Gulf Coast’s External Vice President at the time, Thanh-Thanh Pham, serves as the Executive Director for UNAVSA-14.
November 11, 2017: All Together Date Auction
For the first time, all ten affiliate schools in the Gulf Coast region are able to successful participate in Date Auction.
June 1, 2018: Leadership and Professional Development Summit I
UVSA Gulf Coast hosted its FIRST regional conference, the Leadership & Professional Development Summit, themed “Waterlines: Rise Above.”
June 3, 2018: Third E-Board is Elected
UVSA Gulf Coast officially elects its new Executive Board members for the 2018-2019 term.
President Khoa Vu
Internal Vice President Joe Bagert, LSU Student
June 28, 2018: The Third E-board is complete
UVSA Gulf Coast officially elects its entire Executive Board members for the 2016-2018 term.
President Khoa Vu
Internal Vice President Joe Bagert, LSU Student
External Vice President Duy Dang, Xavier Alum
Treasurer Andrew Pham, Ole Miss Alum
Secretary Leslie Nguyen, UL Alum
January 3, 2019: Culture Cooking Night
UVSA Gulf Coast hosts its first Culture Cooking Night (CCN). Culture Cooking Night is led by Una Ha, a UL alum, and was established in order to promote better culture awareness and comfort through teaching participants how to cook certain Asian dishes. Participants were able to prepare and cook ingredients for themselves. For this Culture Cooking Night, the spotlight dish was Bun Thit Nuong Cha Gio.
August 31, 2019: Leadership Retreat Expansion
Leadership retreat is expanded to ALL E-Board members across the ten (10) affiliate schools. Leadership Retreat 6 was held in Livingston, Alabama at the Covey Run Lodge. Over 40 attendees participated in a variety of workshops covering topics such as professionalism, building your organization, Google Drive, Slack, and many more. Attendees were able to bond over the course of two and a half days to strengthen bonds through the Gulf Coast Region.
January 1, 2020: Incorporation
UVSA Gulf Coast officially becomes incorporated in the State of Louisiana.