ASIAN & PACIFIC ISLANDER AMERICANS IN HISTORIC PRESERVATION RECEIVES FUNDING FROM MELLON FOUNDATION

PRESS RELEASE: ASIAN AND PACIFIC ISLANDER AMERICANS IN HISTORIC PRESERVATION RECEIVES FUNDING FROM MELLON FOUNDATION TO SUPPORT ORGANIZATIONAL CAPACITY BUILDING

June 8, 2023

Washington, DC - With generous support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Foundation’s Humanities in Place program, APIAHiP is seeking its first full-time paid Executive Director, who will continue to define their role and work closely with the board of directors to develop a vision for the organization that advances APIAHiP’s mission to protect historic places and cultural resources significant to Asian and Pacific Islander Americans through historic preservation and heritage conservation.

“We are thrilled to receive generous support by the Mellon Foundation to build our organization’s capacity in serving as the first national nonprofit focused on elevating Asian and Pacific Islander Americans in the field of historic preservation,” shared President Michelle Magalong, PhD. “The Mellon Foundation sees the value in supporting APIAHiP’s work and potential, and the need to adequately fund our leadership pipeline. It has always been part of my core values to be the first volunteer Executive Director, never to be the last or only person to hold that position.” Dr. Magalong will continue to serve APIAHiP as a Senior Advisor while maintaining her work as Assistant Professor in Historic Preservation at the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland.

APIAHiP announces a paid job position opening for Executive Director. APIAHiP is seeking applications for the Executive Director who would be responsible for overseeing the entire operation of the organization, ranging from maintaining and developing relationships with new and existing donors and community members, program development and implementation, historic preservation (e.g., landmark designation assistance) deliverable preparation and technical assistance skills, grant writing, representing the organization at events and conferences, and delegation of various administrative tasks.

“The Asian Pacific Islander Americans for Historic Preservation (APIAHiP) has grown since its beginnings and has made some great steps in the preservation of Asian Pacific Islander American histories and cultures,” shared co-founder and Board Chair Bill Watanabe. “The generous grant from the Mellon Foundation will allow us to move beyond a volunteer organization and to hire competent staff who can help us to become more effective in this great American cultural movement known as historic preservation. There are so many APIA places and stories to be honored and recognized - and we look forward to this great challenge before us.”

To learn more about the job announcement, visit here.

Asian and Pacific Islander Americans in Historic Preservation was founded in 2007 and became incorporated as a 501c3 nonprofit corporation in 2018. Since 2007, APIAHiP (pronounced aye pee eye aye hip) has hosted six biennial National APIA Historic Preservation Forums, convening over 800 preservationists, historians, urban planners, architects, community leaders, policy makers, and others involved in preserving and sustaining historic and cultural resources that are important to APIAs across the United States and its territories. APIAHiP has also been involved with national advocacy and policy issues, including increasing participation and visibility of APIA historic and cultural resources. APIAHiP provides advocacy and technical support for individuals and organizations seeking to preserve historical and cultural resources (e.g., landmark nominations, funding, context studies, archival research) deemed significant to telling the history of APIAs in the built environment in the U.S. and its territories. For more information, visit www.apiahip.org

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