“Why is Asia important?”
That question—one of the first Holden Tsai ’27 was asked in his International Relations with East Asia course—has shaped much of his scholarly work at Pomona.
“For a majority of my life, I’ve learned about Europe, the U.S., the Revolutionary War,” says Tsai, an international relations major and Asian studies minor from Ann Arbor, Michigan. “I didn't learn a lot about Asia besides from my parents. But Asia is not a random little dot on the map; it takes up much of the map.”
Since starting at Pomona, Tsai has immersed himself in his discipline, presenting independent research on a panel discussion he organized, co-publishing an article with Associate Professor of Politics Mietek Boduszyński, participating in a selective student conference in Japan and picking up two academic awards along the way.
This semester he is continuing his international trajectory as he studies abroad in Seoul.
“Security there is very important,” says Tsai, “And it’s a good time to learn about North Korea too.”
As an admitted student visiting Pomona’s campus, Tsai thought he would major in English. But he crossed paths that day with Tom Le, associate professor of politics and co-coordinator of Asian studies, who sold him on the benefits of majoring in international relations.
Tsai wasn’t aware that such a major existed, but he says international relations “presents a lot of options to address my interest in being internationally focused and also creating solutions.”
During his first year, a class at Scripps College called Cold War of Taiwanese/America piqued Tsai’s interest in Asian textbooks.
Growing up, Tsai learned Chinese using his mom’s old textbooks from Taiwan. Even as a child, he noticed that “they were filled with propaganda about the communists in mainland China versus the nationalists in Taiwan.”
In his Scripps class, he examined textbooks and how they were used to indoctrinate people, he says.
Tsai traveled to Taiwan the summer after his first year and accessed a trove of archives. He sought to answer two questions: “How do we teach history, and why is it always so politicized?”
Using the archives, Tsai created a story map online to present his research.
Assistant Professor of Anthropology Cristina Bejarano, who served as Tsai’s sponsor for the independent research, suggested he also present his findings at a panel event.
Creating an event from scratch was a formidable undertaking, but Tsai found support from several departments and individuals. After securing funding from Pomona College’s Humanities Studio, the International Relations Program and the Anthropology Department, he worked closely with Xiuying Zou, head of the Asian Library at The Claremont Colleges Library, to conduct further research.
Additional funding came from the Asian Library Innovation Fund, and the event took place in May in the Founders Room at The Claremont Colleges Library.
Tsai brought together Alexander Chao ’25, a double major in philosophy and history with a concentration in colonialism in Asia; Joseph Ho, a professor of history at Albion College; and Preston McBride, assistant professor of history at Pomona, as the moderator.
The panel, titled “How to Teach History: Lessons from Asia’s Past,” explored how politics and textbooks are often deeply intertwined. Tsai was pleased that a room full of students and local community members was interested in the topic and asked engaging questions.
The project earned him a Claremont Colleges Library Undergraduate Research Award, which “recognizes students who demonstrate exemplary original research and scholarship, including remarkable skill and creativity in the use of library and information resources.” Also in the spring, Tsai was one of two sophomores awarded an Asian studies prize for their achievements in the program.
With all these accomplishments under his belt already, Tsai looks forward to one day working at the intersection of international law and diplomacy. Law school is his current plan for pursuing change at the international level.
“I want to do things that make it easy for me to do more things,” says Tsai. “If I want to make change, I want to get to the point where I can make change.”