Bringing Something New to AU

American University News


Meet Kirsten Jay. Photo by Raheem Dawodu Jr.
Being a trailblazer means that a person is ready to start a new path for others to follow in the future. Kirsten Jay, a print journalism junior who is also minoring in entrepreneurship and management in the Kogod School of Business, is a trailblazer.
In addition to her academic responsibilities, Jay is president of the Asian American Student Union. One would think Jay’s plate is already full, but she has decided to take on another challenge— establishing AU’s first Asian interest sorority. “It is kind of surreal. I never saw myself being part of Greek Life,” Jay said. “And it is a unique opportunity to bring something new to AU.”
Luke Cage
Jay’s idea of launching this sorority came from the Marvel Comics universe when one of the characters on the Netflix show Luke Cage made a reference to Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., or AKA. That excited one of Jay’s friends, who happens to be a member of AKA and was watching the show with her. Jay said it made her wonder, “Why don’t we have an Asian-interest sorority on campus?” After thinking it over, Jay said to herself, “I might as well just do it.”
With that in mind, the San Mateo, Calif, native embarked on a journey to establish the first Asian interest sorority at AU. She put flyers around campus to recruit interested students. Seven other women joined Jay, and they embarked on finding the right sorority. After the group of eight interviewed several Asian interest sororities, they unanimously decided on Kappa Phi Lambda, Inc., an Asian-interest sorority founded at SUNY Binghamton in 1995.
“Kappa Phi Lambda, Inc., really stood out to me personally because of how connected all of the sisters are and how much they value taking care of each other, encouraging ...

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