Successful Asians, pretty dancing girls and most importantly, free food--a winning combination.

On March 27, Century College held its second annual Asian Alumni Reunion Banquet, honoring those Century graduates who have made their mark on the world.

Before the event started, old friends greeted and caught up with each other. Smiles were everywhere and it was clear this was more than just some banquet: it was a reunion of friends.

“I think something like this shows us how strong we really are as a community,” said Tou Long Yang, a current Century student.

While everybody was enjoying the delicious food, the speeches began when Century’s interim president, Dr. John O'Brien introduced himself and spoke about the state of the booming Asian population at Century. He cited that last year Century College had 1,241 Asian students (an estimated 95% of which are of Hmong ethnicity) enrolled and there was expectations for even more growth to come.

“Not only are Asian students great in number, they are also great students,” Dr. O’Brien commented. “The last time I checked, Asians as a whole are graduating at a high level and are doing very well in the classrooms.”

The number of Asians at Century itself is an amazing tally, but it is even more amazing when put in perspective.

“When I went here it was called Lakewood Community College,” said Class of 1996 Alumnus, Cha Vang. “But I guess it was the same. Back then we had a lot of Asian people too, about twenty.”

The night then continued with a performance by the Minnesota Angels, a dance group headed by Ka Bao Vang, Miss Hmong Minnesota 2009.

Following the performance, Ilean Her, the Executive Director for the Council of Asian-Pacific Minnesotans, spoke about the Hmong community and about her journey to become the first Hmong woman to become a lawyer in Minnesota.

After the speech, Dr. John O'brien and admissions advisor, Blong Yang, presented the Asian Alumni Awards to Dr. Boua Sao Yang, MD; Long Yang, Ph.D, Executive Director of Lao Family; and Ka Houa Yang, Chairman of the Board Lao Family.

Long Yang remembers a different atmosphere when he attended Century (or Lakewood) in 1982 as one of the very first Hmong students.

“Even though there were fewer of us back then, we were able to support one another through school,” Yang recalls. “Century was a great place for those of us in the first generation of Hmong in America to start our educations.”

With the awards given out, the last speech of the night was given by Cheu Lee, a Century alumnus and also the creator of Hmong Times, Lee Tax Service and a number of other business ventures. Lee spoke of his journey to become an entrepreneur and of his parents who were a great inspiration to his success.

To end the night, Dr. John O'Brien returned to the podium and spoke about the Century College “Common book”, a unique concept for a higher learning institution in which one book is assigned to be read by all Century staff, faculty and student body.

Next year’s common book will be Twin Cities native Kao Kalia Yang’s The Late Homecomer, a personal memoir about her family’s escape from Laos. With the growing population of Asians at Century College, Dr. O’Brien was quick to remind, the book selection seems very appropriate.