ASO Begins New Year With Energy

By Tamara Karakashian
Staff Writer

The Armenian Students Organization (ASO) was established to cultivate a spirit of appreciation toward Armenian history, heritage, culture and the Armenian language. The organization encourages college students to participate regardless of race, religion, or national origin. Annually, ASO sponsors public speaking engagements, film viewings, and organizes lectures to educate and inform the entire student body about Armenian issues.

This year the executive officers look forward to an exciting and productive year. Our executive officers this year are Chad Kirkorian, President; Gary Atashkarian, Vice President; Tamara Karakashian, Treasurer; Talar Atarian, Secretary; and Shayla Srabian, Historian.

This semester, the ASO has already organized many activities such as a celebration on Armenian Independence Day, Sept. 21, 1999 and a pizza night at Chucky Cheese’s. During the Independence Day celebration members of the

ASO distributed orange ribbons to the student body, as a symbol of national pride, and also offered paklava as dessert. Members also circulated informative flyers on cultural, religious, statistical and historical aspects of the Republic of Armenia. The first portion of this semester has been extremely successful due to the efforts of all ASO members who have participated.

Some upcoming events which were discussed at our last meeting include the Adana Conference which will be held on Saturday, Oct. 9, 1999 which will feature lectures by Armenian scholars. The Armenian Studies Banquet will be held Oct. 10, 1999, with an admission price of $15 for students. All scholarship recipients must attend the banquet to receive their scholarships. Other events under consideration for this semester are: a trip to the Big Fresno Fair and a Halloween party along with a trip to the haunted forest.

Just as a reminder, membership dues are currently being collected. They are $10 this semester. Paid members will receive discounts on all ASO sponsored events. We are planning on having T-shirts available later this semester. The cost of the T-shirts will be $5 with paid membership and $10 for all non-members. We look forward to seeing all of you at our meetings and events this year.