Skip to Main Content

Southeast Asian Diaspora Studies

The UCI Libraries' Southeast Asian Archive is the richest collection of books, reports, manuscripts, archival materials, photos, artwork, and ephemera documenting the peoples of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia outside their homelands.

Email this link:

Model Curriculum Project

In response to Assembly Bill No. 167, ​​​​​the O​​​range County Department of Education is currently leading the development of three model curriculum projects centering on the Cambodian, Hmong, and Vietnamese American histories, culture, and refugee experience. Members of the community, researchers, and educators inform the development of the model curriculum. Visit their website for more information on conferences free for educators and the public to attend. 

Cambodian American Studies Model Curriculum

Artwork by Phung Huynh.

The Cambodian American Model Curriculum includes documents, planning resources and teaching strategies on the histories and cultures of Cambodian community including:

  • Cambodian American history and heritage
  • The long-term causes and effects of the Cambodian Genocide
  • The experiences of Cambodian Americans coming to the United States
  • The establishment of Cambodian American communities

Hmong History and Cultural Studies

Artwork created by Boon Ma Yang.

The Hmong History and Cultural Studies Model Curriculum aims to facilitate a better understanding of the diverse world we live in and complicate the monolithic narratives of people seen as "other". Topics included in this curriculum are:

  • Hmong ways of Knowing
  • Hmong Histories
  • Hmong refugee Experiences
  • Community Building, home-making and empowerment

Vietnamese American Model Curriculum

Artwork by Thuan Vu.

The Vietnamese American Model Curriculum is a set of open-source lesson plans, primary source documents, planning resources, teaching strategies, and professional development activities designed to enhance existing courses or support educators in course development. Topics covered include:

  • Vietnamese American refugee experience
  • The Fall of Sài Gòn in 1975
  • Vietnamese boat people and members of the Republic of Vietnam Armed Forces, the reasons behind the exodus, the hardships faced by the Vietnamese people attempting to flee who were apprehended by the communist government, and the conditions that led to the resettlement of Vietnamese people in the United States.
  • The long-term causes and effects of the refugee experience
  • The establishment of Little Saigons
  • An emphasis on cultural practices in the Vietnamese diaspora