As first-year students prepare to move in tomorrow, the University of Arizona’s Asian Pacific American Student Council continues to raise concerns about the May consolidation of cultural resource centers and the lack of transparency in the process.

The group released a statement on its Instagram page at the end of July, saying the decision was made “without consideration of student perspectives and needs.”

“It was made behind closed doors, lacking transparency and denying UA students their right to have a voice in administrative decisions,” the statement said.

The statement accompanied the official announcement that longtime Asian Pacific American Student Affairs Director Kenny Importante had been dismissed from his position as part of the consolidation. APASC is the student council that partners with APASA.

The group isn’t the first to take to social media to address the consolidation. In May, Native American Student Affairs Director Julian Juan announced his firing on Instagram, a week before Women’s and Gender Resource Center Director Kim Dominguez posted a video addressing her own termination.

“The removal of directors from all cultural centers has raised deep concerns about long-term staffing and institutional support,” said APASC’s statement. “While new leadership transitions may now be underway, it is still deeply troubling that experienced directors were abruptly let go without student input, especially given the vital role they play in supporting and advocating for our communities.”

UA spokesman Mitch Zak referred Tucson Spotlight to a July 24 statement from the UA annoucing Importante's new role as co-director of the new Student Culture and Engagement Hub, reporting to Jenna Hatcher and Provost Patricia Prelock,

Importante did not respond to Tucson Spotlight’s request for comment.

APASC called Importante instrumental to the center and its student advocacy. He has worked at the University of Arizona for 18 years, including 15 in a leadership role.

Despite Importante’s role with the new hub, APASC said it still has concerns for the students in its community.

“We cannot depend solely on faculty to be our voice and leadership, nor can we stand by and allow administration to push agendas without understanding their impact on students,” the group said in the Instagram statement.

Other cultural resource centers have expressed similar concerns, including the LGBTQ+2S Resource Center, which announced on Instagram that all cultural resource center websites had been shut down as of July 29.

"The administration at the University of Arizona is slowly destroying all of the cultural resource centers. First they fired the directors, then they took our names, and now they have removed our websites," the post said. "We refuse to allow them to censor another form of our resources, so this account has been taken over by the LGBTQ+ Student Council."

The council is a group of students from the center advocating for students on campus by "preserving and expanding access to queer-affirming resources & information at the UA."

Prior to the May consolidation, each center had its own website that included full staff and administrative directories and information about student resources.

On the new Student Culture and Engagement Hub website, the only information available about staff is the location of their office.

“During these times, we call for clarity and collaboration,” APASC said on Instagram. “(We) will not let recent changes diminish or erase our existence, but make our community and connections stronger.”

Sarah Arellano is a journalism major at the University of Arizona and Tucson Spotlight intern. Contact her at saraharellano@arizona.edu.

Tucson Spotlight is a community-based newsroom that provides paid opportunities for students and rising journalists in Southern Arizona. Please consider supporting our work with a tax-deductible donation.