The Emory Wheel

Emory hosts first Georgia Filipino Student Association summit

By sAndy Ge Oxford Campus Desk

Emory University hosted the first Georgia Filipino Student Association (FSA) Leadership Summit in the Emory Student Center on Feb.

26. FSA student leaders from five universities across Georgia — Emory, the University of Georgia, the Georgia Institute of Technology, Kennesaw State University (Ga.) and Mercer University (Ga.) — gathered to celebrate their community, Emory FSA President Danielle Mangabat (23C) said.

According to Mangabat, the overarching theme of the summit was Bayanihan, a Filipino custom derived from the word “bayan," meaning nation, town or community. The term means “being in a bayan,” referring to the spirit of communal unity and cooperation to achieve a goal.

During the summit, students sat at tables with students from each of the five universities and participated in team building activities to build the best bayan.

Mangabat noted that she wanted to have the summit so that FSA leaders from different campuses can “really create a legacy together” and make sure “that the club stays running as a cultural hub and safe space for our Filipino American students.”

Leaders across the universities shared stories of what FSA means to each of them, Mangabat wrote. They also participated in workshops, such as Georgia Tech’s “Bulaklakan Dance Workshop,” and educational sessions facilitated by Filipino associations, including the Malaya Movement

See FILIPINO, Page 4