Students revive Suffolk’s (Boston) Armenian Students Association
This fall, junior accounting major Emma Keledjian brought the Armenian Students Association back to campus.
Keledjian took the initiative to continue the club’s chapter to connect with other Armenians and create a community for people who share the country’s culture.
The E-Board consists of Keledjian as president, supported by students Neka Vladimirov as vice president, Madison Naroian as treasurer, Maral Zobian as Secretary and Michael Najarian as Outreach Chair. Najarian is also Sports Editor of The Suffolk Journal.
The Armenian Students Association held its interest meeting Sept. 19, where they received a positive response from curious members.
Multiple potential ideas for activities were discussed, including informative presentations to bring awareness to the Armenian genocide, cooking cultural dishes, a trip to an Armenian museum and maybe even language and dancing courses.
Meetings are held bi-weekly on Thursdays during the activities period, where they will touch on different topics each week.
The leaders are looking forward to collaborating with other Armenian Students Associations in the Greater Boston area.
Additionally, interested and existing club members participated in sharing where they came from and their family’s history.
“It’s kind of big in the Armenian culture to ask where you came from because there’s so many diasporas,” said Keledjian.
Vice President Vladimirov, a senior history and global cultural studies double major, expressed their feelings about the first meeting.
“It’s pretty amazing to me to see how different the Armenian community is everywhere because at that meeting, there were a lot of people who had very different backgrounds despite us being Armenian,” said Vladimirov.
This range in backgrounds is due to the divide between eastern and western Armenians, as well as Soviet Armenians and Armenian Americans.
Vladimirov stated that after last year’s events of Artsakh being attacked and taken by Azerbaijan, they felt incredibly alienated, expressing they felt “like nobody was talking about it at all.”
This club strives to create a safe, welcoming community for anyone who, like Keledjian and Vladimirov, has felt isolated by the daunting historical events of Armenia.
“This is an empowering space because I relate to more people,” said Vladimirov.
The vice president expressed that this is a big part of the club’s overall mission.
This Armenian Students Association is another cultural addition to Suffolk University’s diverse clubs, offering another safe space to share and learn about the similarities and differences of cultures, aiding to “broaden the perspective,” said Keledjian.
Both Keledjian and Vladimirov agreed on wanting the club to foster a safe community for anyone interested. The association is open to everyone on campus, whether they are interested in exploring Armenian culture or have the culture in their families and are looking for a group of people who can relate to similar experiences.
