About the Program

Introduction

What does it mean to be a member of the Asian Students Association at Duke? Do you have to attend every single event and participate in LNY? Do you have to look Asian? Or do you simply have to like Asian stuff? The number of Asians at Duke is rising steadily, and there needs to be an organization that promotes awareness of the Asian culture. There has been some criticism of ASA in the past regarding the lack of diversity of members in the organization and at ASA's events. What if this could be rectified with a very simple program that appeals to everyone? Is that something you'd be interested in?

Synopsis

ASA would like to emphasize that anyone who has an appreciation for Asian culture is welcome to join this program! The newly implemented membership program (that any Duke student can join) will allow members to accumulate ASA Points (henceforth referred to as ASAPs) by attending ASA sponsored events, which can then be redeemed for incentives such as free gifts and discounts at local venues. Members will also have access to a brand-new ASA membership website, where they can check their ASAPs, get free stuff, and help make ASA better by evaluating events. This system will not only promote a sense of ownership to members of ASA, but also make going to events fun and worthwhile. Membership will be open to anyone who seeks it, and it will not be selective towards Asians.

How It Works

New members requesting membership will be given an account with a user name and password on the brand new ASA website. Upon logging in, they will be able to check their ASAPs accumulation, as well as membership rank. At events, members can sign-in to receive credit for their participation. After attending an event, members will be able to fill out an online evaluation form to provide feedback on the event.

Sample point values:

• 100 ASAPs (or more) for each ASA event you attend
• 30 ASAPs for each ASA event you help flyer for
• 20 ASAPs for each evaluation form you fill out per event

Sample Redeemables (points earned can be spent on these items):

300 ASAPs:

LNY T-shirt, LNY DVD , or Music CD (retail: $10.00)

500 ASAPs:

Anation.net T-shirt (retail: $17.99)

5 coupons for free bubble tea (retail: $15.00)

VIP seating at LNY (limited supply)

Other:

Free dinner at Mt. Fuji

End-of-Year Celebration (a.k.a. EYC)

At the end of the year, there will be a large celebration banquet for all members of ASA at a nice venue (e.g. G-Loft). Seniors and/or Exec Board members will be commended, as well as high-ranking members of the program. Fun festivities will ensue. This may include integration of last year's "Music on the Plaza." Free giveaways (free Wii, karaoke machine) and awards (most earned, most saved). Maybe guest performances by Red Hot Chili Peppers, T.I., William Hung.

Top Reasons to Use ASAPs

1. The incentive of points will promote higher attendance at ASA events. There are no membership fees, no penalties, and only incentives to gain from attending ASA events. People will want to attend and it'll give the exec board a chance to show ASA's members how great its events really are. Additionally, point values of low-profile events can be increased to boost attendance.
2. By implementing this new membership system, a solid headcount of active members can easily be retrieved from the website's database. This is useful for administrative purposes, as well as recording demographics of certain events such as Beach Retreat or Senior Sendoff.
3. Feedback for each event can be documented directly from the attendees. Each member with an account will be able to fill out a form online to evaluate each evene they attend, providing valuable feedback on what went well and what needs to be changed for future events.
4. Membership ranking will be an indication of one's activity in ASA. This is one objective way of judging one's commitment to ASA, a useful statistic for elections.