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Irene H.S. So '61 is honored for her commitment to Cornell and the Asian/Asian-American community.

More than 270 members of the Cornell Asian Alumni Association (CAAA) and their guests honored its former president, Irene H.S. So '61, at the 21st annual CAAA Banquet Jan. 21 at Grand Harmony Palace in Manhattan's Chinatown.

The banquet raised more than $40,000 and also celebrated the awarding of CAAA's 51st, 52nd and 53rd Cornell scholarships to outstanding undergraduate students of Asian and Asian Pacific American heritage.

So, a dental surgeon who served as CAAA president 1995-97, was recognized for her commitment to Cornell, the Asian/Asian-American community and CAAA, and for being instrumental in ensuring the organization's vitality during its formative years. She also has been active with the Cornell Club of Northern New Jersey, the University Council, and the Cornell Alumni Federation's committee on alumni trustee nominations. She is a member of the President's Council of Cornell Women and the Library Advisory Council.

In referring to Ezra Cornell's statement, "I would found an institution where any person can find instruction in any study," So said, "The founder's purpose for Cornell University is evident in my own experience as a woman and a first-generation Chinese immigrant, enabling me to enter the world of science and the community of educated men and women. ... Since my graduation, this university experience has become commonplace for persons with Asian background. But none of us should forget the value of the opportunities we have received or the wonder that we are a part of the Cornell experience."

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Artist Kwong Lum posing with the artwork he presented to Cornell at the CAAA 21st Banquet in New York City Jan. 21.

Also at the dinner, artist and art expert Kwong Lum, chief consultant of the Beijing National Museum of China and one of the world's leading experts in traditional and modern Chinese art and antiques, presented one of his works -- created especially for this banquet -- as a gift to Cornell. Frank Robinson, recently retired director of the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, accepted the gift: an excerpt, in free script calligraphy, from a poem by Li Bai (A.D. 701-762, Tang Dynasty).

"It's very exciting," Robinson said, "and it symbolizes the great, intimate relationship Cornell and the Johnson Museum have with Asia and Asian art."

In discussing the annual event, President Emeritus Frank Rhodes remarked: "These are always wonderful festivities. They are important, it seems to me, because they not only link all the richness and culture of the Asian peoples, but also in the most remarkable way, unite their richness with every other member of society -- every other member of the human race. And I know of no other group on campus, and no other alumni group, that has that remarkable capacity."

"Since its founding in 1990, CAAA has led the way in connecting Asian and Asian-American alumni and students," noted CAAA President Michael Lee '99. "The banquet is an integral part of our fundraising efforts ... [for] the CAAA Scholarship Program. We are excited to work with Cornell to forge a stronger bond [and] ... look forward to being partners in [Cornell's] diversity initiatives to bring together alumni, students and university officials."

The event, which was co-sponsored by Cornell University Diversity Alumni Programs, also included entertainment by members of the Cornell Ballroom DanceSport Team, Lotus Music and Dance, and the Cornell Karaoke Club.