Mei Long named new PAACH director

Mei Long has been selected as the next director of the Pan-Asian American Community House starting July 3. 

Associate Vice Provost of University Life Will Atkins announced the decision in a June 27 email to students, University Life staff, and other campus partners. Long has previously served as an associate director of academic affairs and advising in the Wharton School’s undergraduate division since 2018. 

“Throughout her years in higher education, Mei has consistently demonstrated a deep commitment to fostering an inclusive environment where students of all backgrounds can thrive academically, culturally, and socially,” Atkins wrote in the announcement. 

Long is also currently a doctoral candidate at the Graduate School of Education, where she received her Master of Education in 2011. Prior to joining Wharton, she was an academic advisor at Drexel University and worked in Penn’s Career Services office as an associate director. 

PAACH’s office is located in ARCH, which reopened in September 2022 with plans for cultural resource centers — currently located in the building’s basement — to expand to the entire building. 

University Life launched a national search to fill the position of PAACH director after Peter Van Do, who had held the position for 10 years, abruptly left the University. At the time, the associate director position had already been vacant for three years. Cindy Au-Kramer, PAACH’s finance, operations, and program coordinator, stepped up to support student groups in light of such vacancies. 

In January, PAACH hired two new associate directors: Vicky Aquino and Daniel Hoddinott. Aquino was previously a human resources coordinator and development operations assistant at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Hoddinott arrived from the University of Connecticut, where he was the assistant director for honors residential communities and programming. Prior to that, he was the assistant director of the Asian and Asian American Center at Cornell University.