Filipino Club President Jakob De Leon welcomes Filipinos and all students to the new Filipino Club where people can explore and celebrate their roots, heritage and culture.

“I started Filipino Club because I wanted to get out of my comfort zone and do something I would’ve never thought of doing,” De Leon said. “But I didn’t feel like any clubs were a good fit for me. I was scrolling through my friend’s Instagram when I saw their story about being the Filipino club president of their school and I realized that I could just start my own Filipino club.”

The club, which started this spring, meets at the library every Friday except on Fiesta Fridays. It’s a place where members can connect and bond over their shared heritage. You also don’t have to be Filipino to join. The club serves as a universal opportunity for students to educate and immerse themselves in Filipino history, traditions and values. 

“I myself am a Filipino student in this school,” Vice President Khalel Gillen said. “Not just a Filipino American but I am Philippine-born. I want to help Filipino American students understand just what it means to be Filipino.”

The club is fairly new, only having a couple of meetings so far, but De Leon has big plans for the upcoming year. 

“I won’t lie and say that it hasn’t been hard planning for Filipino club this late in the year scheduling around Fiesta Fridays,” De Leon said. “But I’ve been doing my research and looking for activities that I can implement in Filipino club. I also have full intent on helping plan and support Filipino club next year.”

Even though the year is almost over, De Leon plans to have meetings on any Friday he possibly can. He and Gillen are also planning to have an end-of-year potluck, providing a celebration of the Filipino culture and community on campus.