Tia Tyng Chang

Class of 2020: Henry M. Gunn High School
Fall 2020: University of California, Berkeley

Community Service:

• Back to Bach Project, Director of Global Operations
• Business, Entrepreneurship, and Math (BEAM), CEO
• “Captain of the Bench” Varsity Golf Team

Tia will be attending the University of California, Berkeley in the Fall 2020 studying business and either data science or statistics. In her essay Tia wrote: “Today, I am dedicated to sharing my heritage with the world through my gift of music. I brought Back to BACH Project to Taiwan to further arts education. In the process, I finally got to connect my two identities, culturally and musically.”

Melissa Lee

Class of 2020: Fremont High School
Fall 2020: Stanford University

Community Service:

• “Yes We Can,” Founder & Mentor, Youth Empowerment through Sports, Wrestling for Everyone by Commanding An Inclusive Environment
• FHS LINK Crew, Founder & Administrator
• Sunnyvale Teen Advisory Committee

Melissa will be attending Stanford University in the Fall 2020. In her essay she wrote: ”Growing up as an Asian-American in the Bay Area, I have always been very connected to my Chinese heritage and culture. My grandparents, who had immigrated to the United States from the Guangdong Province during their teenage years instilled in me Chinese values that still define me today.” She concluded, ”And that person is proud of her grandparents, proud to be Chinese.”

Alisha Naidu

Class of 2020: Lynbrook High School
Fall 2020: Case Western Reserve University

Community Service:

• National Chinese Honor Society
• Kids Are Scientists Too (KAST), Founder & President of Lynbrook KAST
•  XXHacks Hackathons, Executive Lead, one of the largest all-female high school hackathons in the Bay Area

Alisha will be attending Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, in the Fall 2020. In her essay she wrote: ”I am a first-generation American, of Chinese and Indian heritage…Having a mixed heritage has given me the opportunity to be open-minded. In light of the coronavirus pandemic, Chinese Americans in our own community constantly face racist slurs and unprovoked violence. Instead of driving hate, I believe we should use our situation to come together and fight the coronavirus.”

Joshua Zhang

Class of 2020: Saratoga High School
Fall 2020: San Jose State University

Community Service:

• CHCP Student Docent Liaison, mentor to younger volunteers
• CHCP Chinese Railroad Workers Brochure Project
• Chamber Choir and Men’s A Capella Group performing at school and community events including the CHCP 2019 Annual Membership Dinner 

Joshua will be attending San Jose State University in the Fall 2020. In his essay he wrote: “While working on the Chinese Railroad Workers brochure, I learned that the Chinese workers value family similar to my family. They made many sacrifices and faced hardships to leave their families behind.” He closed with, “Being Chinese taught me the lesson of demonstrating concern and gratitude for family.”

Serena Zhang

Class of 2020: Evergreen Valley High School
Fall 2020: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Community Service:

• Intern in the de Jesus Perez Lab at Stanford University
• Grace Music Institute (GMI), bringing music to many underprivileged youth
• Books4Good, promoting tertiary access to test prep material