Headshot of David Chih.

David Chih

Director
he/him/his

Dr. David Chih is the founding director of the UIUC Asian American Cultural Center which opened in 2005. For over 30 years, David has focused on issues of diversity and inclusion in higher education with particular emphasis on Asian American and international student communities. Since coming to UIUC in 1998, he has served as assistant dean of students for Asian Pacific American Affairs and as a clinical counselor in the Counseling Center. He also served as interim associate vice chancellor for student affairs and director of the Office of Inclusion and Intercultural Relations which is comprised of UIUC’s eight cultural/resource centers. He has received the outstanding commitment in education award from the Illinois State Treasurer, UIUC Student Affairs outstanding staff award, and UIUC outstanding Asian American faculty-staff award. He received a PhD in counseling psychology and a BA in East Asian studies and psychology from Indiana University, an MS in psychology from Purdue University, and completed a doctoral internship in psychology at Michigan State University Counseling Center. David is a second-generation Chinese American born and raised in Bloomington, Indiana.

Headshot of Flordemia dela Vega Conrad.

Flordemia dela Vega Conrad

Office Manager
she/her/hers

Flordemia has worked in the Office of Inclusion and Intercultural Relations (OIIR) since 2009 with La Casa Cultural Latina, Native American House, and Diversity & Social Justice Education. She earned a B.A. in mass communication from Silliman University in Dumaguete City, Philippines. She likes learning about the wide array of cultures and backgrounds of the students and staff with whom she works with. Flordemia likes to spend time with her family, friends and her beloved pet dog and also enjoys listening to variety of music, traveling, food tasting, cooking and gardening. Flordemia is a first-generation Filipina American who came to the US in 2003. 

Jewelry's AACC Headshot

Jewelry Pouna Keodara

Program Coordinator
she/her/hers

Jewelry, a Champaign-Urbana native, is a recent Master of Social Work graduate and former Bachelors of  Social Work graduate from UIUC. Her expertise lies in macro social work, focusing on policy development, program implementation, and organizational leadership. As the child of Laotian immigrants/refugees who migrated following the 1975 Indochina Refugee Crisis, she is dedicated to addressing the diverse needs of the Asian American Pacific Islander community, advocating for positive change. Bringing a diverse range of experiences to the table, Jewelry served as a former policy intern for the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center in Washington, DC and BSW intern at the Refugee Center in Champaign. In her downtime, she enjoys exploring the outdoors, traveling, making art, and playing volleyball/soccer. Jewelry is a second-generation Laotian American from Urbana, Illinois.