News

APSI students celebrate milestones in Spring 2026

It’s the most wonderful time of the year—depending on whom you ask. At APSI, the spring semester is filled with events, courses, activities, and milestone presentations. Students pursuing an MA in East Asian Studies are given the option to either write an MA thesis or revise and submit two research papers originally developed during coursework to satisfy milestone requirements for the degree.

This year, nine soon-to-graduate students successfully defended their projects over 11 days (March 20–31). Snapshots from these academic highlight events are provided below.

They also each shared a brief summary of their work during a public forum on March 30. We are proud of their achievements and look forward to celebrating their graduation in May.

Four people taking a selfie in front of a painted portrait — *pictured l–r: Jiayang Cai, with committee members Eileen Chow, Kimberly Hassel, Nayoung Aimee Kwon*

Jiayang Cai
Fiction, Friction: A Sengoha Encounter in Lotus

Four people standing in a group — *Jia'er Liu (second from left) with committee members Kimberly Hassel, Anne Allison, Carlos Rojas (l–r)*

Jia'er Liu
Under the Influence: Visibility, Interpretation, and Embodied Pleasure in Contemporary Chinese Heels Dance

Four people in a selfie — *Meilin Long (second from right) with committee members Nayoung Aimee Kwon, Eileen Chow, and Guo-Juin Hong (l–r)*

Meilin Long
Divergent Memories of the “Refugee Student”: Trauma, Politics, and Identity in the Memoirs of Chi Pang-yuan and Wang Dingjun

Four people smiling at the camera — *Leo Lyu (second from right) with committee members Nayoung Aimee Kwon, Ralph Litzinger, and Eileen Chow (l–r)*

Leo Lyu
On Schoolyard Tearfests and a Digital Hospice in China

Four people taking a selfie — *Lingxiang Sun (second from right) with committee members Eileen Chow, Kimberly Hassel, and Hae-Young Kim (l–r)*

Lingxiang Sun
Gambling for Love: Chinese Women's Engagement in K-pop Fandom

Lilia Yining Yan
Love by Commission: Performing Intimacy in Chinese Otome Game Fandom

Four people pose in front of a screen where a fifth person's image is projected — *Siyu Zhang (second from left) with committee members Engseng Ho, Prasenjit Duara, and Bai Gao (l–r); onscreen: committee member Yi Wu)*

Siyu Zhang
In the Wake of Resettlement: Reconfigurations of Space, Order, and Sociality in a Bashang Village

Four people stand together — *Daniel Xuyang Zhang (second from left) with committee members Kimberly Hassel, Anne Allison, and Carlos Rojas (l–r)*

Daniel Xuyang Zhang
Negotiating Wanghuang: Chinese Gay Men’s Pornographic Practices on X

Four people stand in a group; three hold cards — *Anqi Zheng (second from right) with committee members Nicole Elizabeth Barnes, Eileen Chow, and Prasenjit Duara (l–r)*

Anqi Zheng
Claiming Li Qingzhao’s Legacy in Modern China: Women’s Participation in Chinese Collecting Culture from 1800-1950