Franklin Odo Receives Lifetime Achievement Award

Franklin Odo Receives Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association for Asian American Studies (AAAS)

Franklin Odo accepting his award at the AAAS Conference on April 14, 2012.

The Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Program congratulates its founding Director, Franklin Odo, on receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association for Asian American Studies.  Over the course of a professional life that spans several decades, Franklin has advanced and institutionalized Asian American scholarship at several organizations, including the Department of Ethnic Studies at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and the Smithsonian Institution.  These were not easy feats.  Franklin established these programs in climates where the Asian American experience was relatively unknown and/or struggled for cultural, financial and political capital.  While Franklin fought these important battles, he continued to be an active scholar who never lost faith in the public’s capacity to embrace the concerns of Asian America and recognize our centrality to understanding America and the world.  We offer our heartfelt congratulations to Franklin Odo.