As alumni, we'd like to invite you to our upcoming events for Winter Quarter 2012. 

Our upcoming events include:

• F*** V-day (2/9/12): Location TBA
• Teaching Panel (2/23/12): 7PM @ Wellman 209
• America is on the Stage (AIOTS) (3/1/12): 7PM @ Wyatt Pavilion

The "Not-So-Has-Been" Predicament

By: Kaye Caburnay

There’s a term that many of us who receive this newsletter can identify with – “has-been.” This refers to those of us who were involved, especially those who held positions, in the Fil-Am community and have graduated. The bright side of being a has-been, though, is that you know exactly where you stand. You’re an alumnus. You’re an advisor. You get to attend all the biggest Fil-Am events and finally get to relax while they happen. Sure you spend the majority of your time at those events reminiscing about the times that were and, sometimes, longing for the days when you were the ones running around, frantic to find a solution to each new problem that arises.

But there is one phase that not all of us, but a good handful, end up – a “not-so-has-been.” This occurs when you’ve reached the top of the Fil-Am food chain, but you don’t end up leaving. This is what has happened to me. I played the game correctly – found my niche in our wide expanse of a community, moved my way up from Secretary, Vice President, and finally, in my senior year – President of FILAH. Along the way, I was an MK Choir director, heavily involved in different aspects of Pilipino Culture Night, spent many nights in Wellman at Fil-Am meeting after Fil-Am meeting soaking up as much of the wealth that our community had to offer. I knew that I would have to take extra quarters at UC Davis, but the plan was to always to take a step back once my presidency was over.

However – there came a point near the end of the school year where I realized that I couldn’t just let go, especially not when I was going to still be a student. I mean – what am I supposed to do with all that extra time? Besides, I had fallen completely and desperately in love with the Fil-Am. That’s when I decided that there’s one last aspect of the Fil-Am I still wanted to be more involved with – Pilipino Culture Night.

That brings me to now – one of the PCN Coordinators just hours before the start of Winter Quarter PCN Practices begin, reflecting on exactly how I’ve come to be in the position I’m in. So far, this year has been the most different of all the years I’ve been at Davis and involved in the Fil-Am Community. Sometimes it’s hard to identify exactly where I stand. Do I hang out with the alumni – the ones you came to the Fil-Am with and should have left the Fil-Am with? Do I sit with all those I’m on board with now?

However, the hardest aspect of being a “not-so-has-been” is that it’s quite a cruel sort of limbo. There’s a kind of “impending doom” feeling. You know that you’re going to have to move on to bigger, scarier things soon and that you’re going to have to finally figure out what those things are. It’s especially difficult because you’ve already kind of gone through this moving on process before. To be doing it again is really quite daunting. Though, there is one thing I’ve learned from being a not-so-has-been: our community is one with no comparison. The sense of family, friendship, and culture is something I’ve never encountered before. I’ve realized that that aspect is what makes it so hard for us to leave, the reason we all always come back for FATDs and PCN. So, although being a not-so-has-been is a difficult persona to adopt, I am glad to have the chance to hold on for one year longer.  

FILAHumni Network on LinkedIn

 By: Courtney Lorca

Hi FILAH members and FILAHumni! FILAH has a group on LinkedIn for alumni and current students to interact: Linkedin Group Link. This is an excellent way for all of us, undergrad and post-grad alike, to connect with one another on a more professional level.

LinkedIn is a social networking site for professionals – you have your own profile page where you can list of all of your work experience, skills, educational background, and anything else about yourself that would attract prospective employers. On LinkedIn, you can add people you know and check out their connections; if they know someone you’d like to add but don’t know personally, you can ask to be introduced. In addition to making connections, there are many groups you can join, including ones specific to UC Davis for certain majors, regions, and organizations. There are also many other aspects of LinkedIn that are definitely worth exploring!

The FILAHumni Network is fairly new, so here are four ways you can stay active on the LinkedIn group:

• Introduce yourself. Use this as a way to share your accomplishments and how you got there, no matter where you are in the employment process -- you never know who you might help or who could help you! If you’re an undergrad, this is a good way to meet people who are in positions that you might want to seek in the future.
• Ask and answer questions. FILAH has always been a welcoming and helpful organization, and there are plenty of people who are willing to lend their expertise to you, whether it’s about a particular graduate school or career path or which classes and professors are most helpful.
• Post job and internship opportunities. All career types are welcome, but even better if they’re related to liberal arts and humanities to continue FILAH's mission to bring attention to professions in these fields.
• Share articles that would appeal to the FILAH community. LinkedIn discussion boards are a terrific venue for talking about current issues and interests, as well as making new professional connections.

A Letter from a Former VP

Hi, FILAH Brethren!  For those of you who don’t know me, my name is Dennison.  I was active in FILAH from late Winter 2009 up until graduation this past June 2011.  Needless to say, I miss the sweet life of undergrad…and to use this space as an outlet for expression, I’d like to take the opportunity to briefly share my experience being on the “other side,” for those of you curious enough to read. 

I’m definitely not saying that this is the way it usually works out, but I can say from my personal experience that coming home after four years of college was three gasps short of a nightmare.  Long story short, I did not expect the months following graduation to end up the way they have.  I’ll spare everyone the details (since it’s a bit personal), but to sum it all up, here’s the truth:  I'm scared.

People always talk about the frustration and anxiety that often comes with facing the “real world” after graduation, and in the midst of still holding onto being hopeful and optimistic, you don’t really realize the other potential “bad” things that can happen.  Well, here I am—my mind is in shits and shambles.  I’m still jobless.  Reassessing my situation.  Trying to confirm exactly what my “next course of action” should be.  Trying to be practical.  Trying to stay calm.  Trying to stay optimistic.  Trying to be happy with where I am in my life (isn’t everyone?).

I'm really glad that current FILAH Core has been staying connected with FILAH alumni.  It’s good to know that the organization still makes the effort to stay in touch with its roots.  As an alumnus, I’d also like to continue that precedent that FILAH seeks to set in supporting who we are—Filipinos in Liberal Arts and Humanities.  Not to beat a dead horse and repeat what's been said before, but I’d like us to all realize and remember this:  we’re a minority within the minority.  Given our social status (many of us as people of color; first-generation Filipino Americans; the first to go to college in America; the first to study liberal arts and humanities) our career choice is not easy.  We didn’t pursue our studies just to be lost and forgotten.  We’re passionate about what we do, but we may need all the help we can get.  Here and now, I appeal to you as a Filipino in the Humanities.

Be mindful that it’s not an easy life, especially by yourself.  Let’s maintain a strong network.  Keep supporting each other.  Help each other out.  Be there for each other—because for some of us, the truth may be that this is all we have. 

Looking forward to meeting and keeping in touch with you.

Mabuhay,

Dennison Gallardo