Hye Sharzhoom Armenian Action
By Arakel Arisian ASO President
Every fall students return to school wondering what new things they will learn and see. Classes provide a solid foundation, but students need more than just textbooks and lectures. The Armenian Students Organization (ASO) tries to provide that extracurricular activity so important to students. Its goal is to give students interested in Armenian culture, history, and language something to be involved in. The 1997-98 academic year proved to be successful and a great learning experience. At the end of the year the club elected the following people as executive officers: President – Arakel Arisian, Vice-President – Matt Maroot, Treasurer – Talin Mekhitarian, Secretary – Taleen Kojayan, Historian – Michael Harutinian.
During the summer the executive board and the ASO advisor, Barlow Der Mugrdechian, met a number of times for planning and organizing purposes. Learning and improving from the year before is the main goal. With that goal, the executive members began working on several projects for this fall and next spring. The first accomplishment was the printing of ASO T-shirts. Designed by Garo Nakashian, thirty T-shirts were printed and now many of the members wear them with pride. Another exciting development was the ASO booth which is now located in the Free Speech area on campus. The booth was built by Chad Kirkorian, Michael Harutinian, Matt Maroot, Arakel Arisian, Ara Mekhitarian, Shant Yemenjian, Serop Kupelian, and Barlow Der Mugrdechian. Thanks to their help the booth was constructed and placed on campus. The front of the booth has a giant flowing Armenian flag painted on it. One side of the booth has a painting of Mt. Ararat. So far the booth has been a great place to hang out and meet.
Once school started the attention shifted towards getting new members. By participating in Clubs and Organizations Day during Welcome Week and by recruiting heavily, the ASO phone list has grown to over 60 people.
Besides the bi-weekly meeting the ASO tries to have many other socials and events. A Back to School Party was held on September 19th at Barlow Der Mugrdechian’s house. Over 35 members got together for shish kebab and socializing. The following Monday the ASO held its Armenian Independence Day Shish Kebab Sale. The shish kebab was so popular that by noon everything was sold out. During the sale, Jim and Ed Karagozian played traditional Armenian Music for the students at Fresno State. Besides these social activities the ASO also co-sponsored, along with the Armenian Studies Program, a lecture by Ara Sarafian and Vincent Lima on their publication Armenian Forum. This was a great opportunity for student to interact and talk with Armenian scholars on current issues.
On September the 26th the ASO went to the Homecoming tailgate and game. It was an eventful evening, especially when it suddenly began raining. Most everyone was unprepared and ran for cover.
It has only been a month and so much has happened. The main focus of the month of October is the All-State Student Convention. The All-State Student Convention is going to be held during the weekend of October 23-25 on the Fresno State campus. The convention will have many goals. One purpose is to have a fun and educational way of getting together all the Armenian student organizations. More importantly, the convention will give students an opportunity to discuss topics that are of interest to Armenian students in college. Already many Armenian Student Associations have responded and said that they are coming.
Besides the convention other event are planned for the coming months. Some of those include an International Dance and Music Festival and a Winter Ski Trip. The coming year will be filled with exciting and educational events. Any student interested in Armenian issues and activities is welcome to come and participate. Students can join by calling Arakel Arisian at (209) 432-8959 or the Armenian Studies Office at (209) 278-2669.