Dear Alumni and Friends,

I am pleased to announce that Professor King-Kok Cheung of the Department of Asian American Studies and English is the 2012-13 recipient of the C. Doris and Toshio Hoshide Distinguished Teaching Prize in Asian American Studies at UCLA.

Professor Cheung is author of the critically-acclaimed, Articulate Silences: Hisaye Yamamoto, Maxine Hong Kingston, Joy Kogawa, and her research fields are comparative American ethnic literatures, Asian American literature, comparative literature, and Renaissance British Literature. She has published widely in leading journals such as American Literary History, MELUS, Milton Studies, PMLA, Positions: East Asia Critique, Shakespeare Quarterly, and Transnational Literature. Professor Cheung has also edited key literary anthologies including An Interethnic Companion to Asian American Literature and Words Matter; and served as a co-editor of The Heath Anthology of American Literature. Her research has been honored by fellowships from the ACLS, the Mellon Foundation, the Fulbright Program and the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford. Professor Cheung has been active in the Asian American Studies Center since joining the UCLA faculty in addition to her service to the Departments of English and Asian American Studies. Moreover, she recently served as the Director of the University of California EAP Study Center in Beijing (2008-2010). Professor Cheung received her Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley.

The level of support for Professor Cheung was exceptional, and one of the letters stated: "In the interdisciplinary field of Asian American Studies, she is arguably a 'titan,' having earned an honorable reputation that any aspiring and established scholar would envy. Nevertheless she maintains humility, appreciating the value of student input as well as the importance of a dialogical, rather than directive, pedagogy." In addition, a student commented, "Not only invested in cultivating a sense of camaraderie among younger scholars, Professor Cheung also works hard to facilitate links among scholars, artists, and activists in the field. She consistently invites fellow academics and writers of interest into the classroom so that we may dialogue directly with those who have produced the texts we are currently studying." Another letter-writer said, "She is a great teacher in the deepest sense possible. Most undergraduates will not pursue graduate school. Many graduate students may pursue non-academic careers. Thus, a great teacher is someone who not only imparts lessons in the classroom, but also lessons in life."

The late C. Doris Hoshide, Class of 1934, of Rockville, MD, established the teaching prize to recognize an outstanding professor in Asian American Studies. She and her husband were longtime supporters of Asian American Studies at UCLA. The Hoshide Prize includes a one thousand dollar award.

Please join me in congratulating Professor Cheung!

Sincerely,
David K. Yoo
Director & Professor