After 27 years with the Asian Cultural Council, Cecily D. Cook will be retiring at the end of December 2021. Before joining ACC as Program Officer in 1994, Cecily served as Director of the Refugee Arts Group, working with refugee artists from Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam; and co-directed the Cambodian Artists Project with ACC alumnus Sam-Ang Sam. Throughout her tenure at ACC, Cecily has worked closely with hundreds of grantees and alumni, as well as countless individual and institutional partners. This international community spanning Asia and the United States has defined her experience at ACC:

“I have considered it one of the great privileges of my life to work for ACC. I have had the opportunity to learn new things almost every day and work alongside some of the most interesting, passionate, creative, and infinitely resourceful people in the world. I am deeply grateful to have served a mission that I truly believe in—building connections, understanding and respect across borders. Inherent in every ACC grant is the belief that any and every one has the potential for transformation through the process of cultural exchange—a process that has had an enormous impact on my own life.

I have learned so much from my colleagues and partners in the U.S. and Asia and am so thankful for their generosity and patience. I am proud to have been able to contribute to ACC’s work and legacy, and to have had the chance to make even a small difference in the lives of the many, many grantees I have worked with over the years.  As we always tell our grantees at the end of their fellowships, this is not goodbye. We will see each other again soon, wherever that may be.”


Cecily D. Cook
Asian Cultural Council