Asian Americans have long been crowned as the “model minority.” Their children are said to be studying hard, earning good grades and advancing further socially. But a new study conducted by New York University (NYU) shows that students of Vietnamese, Cambodian and Lao descent actually have a higher dropout rate than African American students, who are usually considered the least advantaged group.

Peter Cheng, executive director of Indochina Sino-American Community Center in Chinatown, said that many of immigrants from the three Southeast Asian countries are of Chinese origin. The center has commissioned NYU to conduct a study to better understand how they cope with the transition.

These students, according to the preliminary data, are far from excelling in school. Surprisingly, they have higher dropout rates than African American students.

Also, these students do not receive enough government assistance. Since most government agencies and social workers treat the Asian community as a homogenous entity, they do not differentiate when they provide help. But the truth is, Cheng said, Southeast Asian immigrants earn considerably less than other Asian immigrants.

Another finding of the study is that women from these Southeast Asian communities suffer from a higher percentage of cervical cancer than that of Caucasian and African American women. That number is also the highest among Asian women. While cervical cancer is curable when detected early, the high percentage is an indication that this group lacks either the means or knowledge for regular checkups.

Cheng pointed out that the myth of a “model minority” has often obscured the need within the different Asian communities.

Based on the findings, many Asian immigrants do need public assistance to fully integrate into the American society. Cheng added that the full report, due to be out in a few months, would provide a clearer picture and would provoke public debate to find ways to better serve these Southeast Asian immigrants.