Maureen Hsia is graduating a year early, but Union won’t soon forget her.
Hsia, a History major and Political Science minor from Shanghai, will be back home in the People’s Republic of China when her name is announced at Sunday’s Commencement. But she has created the annual Maureen Hsia ’07 Prize for Excellence in Middle Eastern Studies, to begin next year.
Hsia’s unusual step of creating a senior gift before she’s officially an alumna embodies her passion for Middle Eastern culture while underscoring her appreciation for Union’s small, personal liberal arts community.
Hsia, 21, is the daughter of Eric Li-Chyun Hsia and Dah-Wei Hsia. She pinpoints her interest in Middle Eastern history to her high school reading of “The Chosen,” Chaim Potok’s novel about the friendship between two Jewish teens from different worlds set against the backdrop of World War II and the Holocaust.
That spurred her to study Israel-U.S. relations, “and from there my interest grew, to the entire Middle East.” She created her own concentration in Middle Eastern history and, working with Prof. Stephen Berk, did her senior thesis on “History of Judeo-Persian Relations.”
Hsia traveled to Turkey and Israel this winter for research and subsequently exhibited her photos of people and marketplaces in the exhibit, “Wandering the Souk,” at the Nott Memorial. More than the beauty of those two countries, she said in her artist’s statement, “I hope to share some insight on my perception of social and cultural realities in the Middle East.”
In the fall, Hsia will have an opportunity to expand those insights when she travels throughout the Mideast.
“My goal is to learn Arabic and immerse myself in the culture,” she said. “There’s so much going on there that needs to be fixed. Finding a solution is something I want to do. I’m ready to go out into the world and do extraordinary things.”
Hsia will be missing Commencement to work at the 2007 Special Olympics World Summer Games in Shanghai as they prepare for their October opening. Some 7,500 athletes will compete in 25 different sports, from aquatics to volleyball.
A graduate of the American Shanghai School and member of the Union Scholars Program, Hsia said leaving a metropolis of more than 20 million people for a city of 61,000 “was a shock at first, but it was good. I really like Schenectady, especially with the new developments changing State Street and events like Art Night. I love Proctors and I like the Schenectady Public Library a lot; it has such a great movie collection.”
Hsia came to Union in the Class of 2008 but is able to graduate with the Class of 2007 because of AP credits she earned in high school and extra courses she took “just because I could.”
She has been on Dean’s List each of her three years and is a member of Phi Alpha Theta, the history honors society. She served as captain of the Ultimate Frisbee team, co-chaired the Student Alumni Association, tutored at the Writing Center and was a member of the Ballroom Dancing Club. She worked at the Rathskeller, was an Orientation advisor and volunteered at Habitat for Humanity.
Her time at Union also has been marked by leadership in the Minerva House System. As Breazzano (formerly Orange) House Council chair, student representative and a house resident for two years, Hsia worked closely with Prof. Byron Nichols, a mentor. Last year, she served as house representative to the presidential inauguration of Stephen C. Ainlay.
“I’m a big fan of the Minervas. I got involved my freshman year, the first year it was implemented,” Hsia said.