nwasianweekly.com
August 4,
2007
Outstanding
Graduates 2007
Compiled
by Camille Villanueva
JinQuan Cai
Roosevelt High School
Although JinQuan emigrated from China only a year and a half ago, she has acclimated well to the United States. She graduated from Roosevelt High with a 3.8 grade-point average, earning herself a $2,500 scholarship from the Rotary Club of the University District in Seattle.
When she was not in class or studying, she worked at the Fun Forest Amusement Park at the Seattle Center as a ticket seller. JinQuan also volunteered at downtown Seattle’s Central Library as a cashier in the souvenir shop.
In the fall, JinQuan will attend Seattle Central Community College. She hopes to one day become an office assistant.
Bora Thach
Cleveland High School
Bora has high hopes to study in the field of aviation and become an aircraft mechanic. She will attend South Seattle Community College in the fall and perhaps transfer to the University of Washington in a few years.
With her work ethic, Bora should have no problem reaching her goals.
The awards she received in high school have honored her perfect attendance
for two consecutive years and her excellence in mathematics. She was
also involved in many community service activities, including being a
cabin leader at Camp Seymour and judging the Straw Tower competition
at a local elementary school.
Bora graduated with a 3.8 grade-point average.
Aaron Chan
Roosevelt High School
Aaron harbors an intense curiosity for how and why everyday objects function the way they do. At an early age, he was already conducting science experiments by himself. It’s no surprise, then, that he plans to major in physics at the University of Washington.
Aaron graduated with a 3.8 grade-point average. As a Running Start student, he earned college credit by taking classes at North Seattle Community College. In his spare time, he volunteered at the University of Washington Experimental Education Program, McClure Middle School and the Clickers Summer Program, where he helped youths use computers.
Hoan Chung
Franklin High School
Hoan’s extensive list of extracurricular activities includes being captain of Franklin High’s swim team. He also graduated as valedictorian, having earned a 4.0 grade-point average. But it was his persistence and drive that led to a huge setback.
Chunda Zeng
Chief Sealth High School
Since emigrating from China in the summer of 2004, Chunda has learned
that his obstacles vanish if he believes in the power of determination
and persistence. After being in the United States for only nine months,
he passed both the reading and writing sections of the Washington Assessment
of Student Learning (WASL), excelled in English as a Second Language
courses and started his junior year taking regular language arts and
social studies classes. He graduated high school with a 3.88 grade-point
average.
Chunda’s determination and persistence have paid off. He has received
scholarships from the Northwest Asian Weekly Foundation’s Diversity
Makes a Difference program, the University of Washington’s “Live
the Dream” program and the Gates Millennium Scholar program.
He plans to attend the UW to study civil engineering. He hopes to one
day build a school for children in rural China.
Judy Danh
Roosevelt High School
Simply trying to fill a graduation requirement of 60 community service
hours became a rewarding experience for Judy, and ultimately helped her
find her true calling in life.
In the summer of 2003, she applied for the Youth Engaged in Service program.
She has consistently volunteered in the community since then.
Judy volunteered at Northwest Hospital as a librarian aide during the
summer of 2005. While there, she spent much of her time supporting families
dealing with challenging health issues. She soon became very interested
in health care and the medical field. She plans to take on a challenging
academic load so she can spend her career helping people achieve their
ideal health.
Judy graduated with a 3.9 grade-point average and will attend the University
of Washington in the fall.
Carmen Huang
Garfield High School
Carmen spent last summer on a missionary trip in London, where she helped
distribute donated clothing and meals to people in need. During the last
school year, she volunteered in the library for a program called Teen
Talk Time, which helps immigrant youths practice their English-language
skills.
Carmen would like to become a nurse. She specifically wants to work with
infants. “I believe I have the character and ability to be a highly
effective professional in this field,” she said.
She graduated with a 3.8 grade-point average, a Student of the Month
Award and a Citizenship Award for her perfect attendance and model behavior.
She will attend the University of Washington in the fall.
Rudy Mei
Cleveland High School
Rudy graduated with a 3.8 grade-point average. He plans to attend the
University of Washington in the fall and major in business administration
and accounting. He hopes to one day open a restaurant or be an accountant.
His extracurricular activities included being a tutor for a Team Read
program, working as a supervisor at the Mercer Community Learning Center
and participating in the Trio Talent Search.
Andy Ngo
Chief Sealth High School
The hardships of leaving Vietnam three years ago have shaped Andy into
the person he is today. He arrived as a high school student, but not
knowing how to communicate in English made him “not much different
from an innocent child,” Andy said. He has overcome these challenges
with persistence and drive.
Andy constantly reads and speaks English in order to increase his fluency.
Outside of school, he works at the Seattle Center as a cashier to help
support his family. He considers himself a genuine and honest person.
He graduated with a 3.9 grade-point average and will attend the University
of Washington Bothell in the fall.
Lynn Tran
Cleveland High School
During her four years at Cleveland High, Lynn discovered a passion for
serving the community. She spent two years participating in the Teen
Peer Advocate Program at Asian Counseling and Referral Service, where
she dealt with issues concerning sexual assault and domestic violence.
Lynn was also involved in a non-profit called The Service Board.
“I’m very happy to see long-lasting programs and service
groups that go way back come together today to try and improve our community
and help educate the youth,” she said. Lynn hopes to continue serving
her community by pursuing a career in the medical field.
She graduated with a 3.6 grade-point average and will attend the University
of Washington.
Curtis Lo
Hazen High School
Curtis can be described as a leader, an athlete and an asset to the community.
During the past school year, he served as president of his class. He
has also been Spanish Club vice president, varsity golf captain and vice
president of the Northwest Asian Weekly Foundation’s board of directors.
In addition, he was a volunteer for the Northwest Asian Weekly’s
Summer Youth Leadership Program.
The various honors Curtis has received for his contributions include
the Renton Rotary Youth of the Month Award and the Coaches’ Award
from the golf team. He is also a graduate of the University of Washington
ASM Materials Science Program and the Seattle Biomedical Research Institute
BioQuest Academy.
He graduated with a 3.87 grade-point average and will attend the University
of Washington in the fall. He plans to major in mechanical engineering.
Karen Joyce P. Ucol
Franklin High School
Balancing school, family, extracurricular activities, work and a social
life was Karen’s biggest obstacle this past year because of her
ambition to succeed in all of her commitments. Her extensive list of
achievements is proof that she did achieve that goal. Taking a heavy
load of rigorous academic courses in Franklin’s Humanities Honors
Academy, she graduated as valedictorian with a 4.0 grade-point average.
Her school activities included playing varsity soccer, basketball and
softball all four years of high school and serving as vice president
of the Filipino Club and vice president of her class.
Outside of school, Karen volunteered at Seattle Veterans Hospital, the
Seattle Chinese Athletic Association and the Student Conservation Association. “Volunteering
is important to me because I believe that people have a responsibility
to provide support for one another,” Karen said. She also worked
three jobs in the past year to help support her family.
Karen will attend the University of Washington this fall. She is looking
forward to creating “my own pathway, a pathway … foreign
to standards set by my parents, yet within the values and ideals of my
family.”
Jennifer Gee
West Seattle High School
Jennifer does not shy away from responsibility. Since her sophomore
year of high school, she has been the captain of the Seattle Chinese
Community Girls Drill Team. Jennifer has also participated in two summer
internships with the City of Seattle and Safeco Insurance. During her
senior year, she became a board member for the National Honor Society.
This summer, she is interning at Miller/Hull, an architecture firm.
Jennifer graduated as valedictorian of her class with a 4.0 grade-point
average. This fall, she will attend the University of Washington.
James Son Nguyen
Roosevelt High School
James’ experiences as an immigrant from Vietnam have greatly influenced his life goals. He said he dreams of helping low-income families, people of color and immigrants who come from developing countries. His goal is to enter the medical field.
James graduated with a 3.85 grade-point average and will attend the
University of Washington in the fall.
His desire to serve others is not limited to his studies. He served his
church as an altar boy and has been a member of the Vietnamese Eucharistic
Youth Society, where he leads weekly gospel discussions and prayers.
Elsewhere in the community, he has volunteered as an office assistant and gift shop assistant at Harborview Medical Center, taught basic first aid to other teens and given his time to the Youth Tutoring Program.
Vishwas Rajkumar
Home School Resource Center
Vishwas began taking college-level courses at North Seattle Community
College at the age of 15. By the time he graduated high school at age
17, he had two full years of college credits. Vishwas will be transferring
those credits to the University of Washington, where he will continue
his education. He plans to work with marine cranes and hopefully start
his own business.
In his free time, Vishwas volunteered at the Pacific Science Center,
helping visitors understand the various exhibits and attractions. He
also played basketball for his local community center’s basketball
team. This summer, Vishwas plans to volunteer at the North Seattle Community
College as a math tutor.
Byron Sasaki
Emerald Ridge High School
“Live life in the present, and be aware of its changes” are
Byron’s words of wisdom to others. They seem to have worked for
him. Throughout high school, he seized opportunities to change and grow.
As a junior, Byron received the South Puget Sound League Scholar Athlete
award. He lettered two years in a row in basketball. As a sophomore,
he took up golf and made it on to the junior-varsity team. Byron also
played Select Baseball and belonged to the Junior Olympic baseball team.
Byron is the recipient of the Puyallup Valley Japanese American Citizens
League Scholarship, as well as the Provost and College of Engineering
Dean’s Scholarship at Oregon State University, where he is headed
this fall.
Byron graduated with a 3.8 grade-point average.
Vi-An Nguyen
Newport High School
Vi-An aspires to be a writer or editor at a major publication in the
journalism business. With an internship at the Northwest Asian Weekly
already under her belt, she is well on her way. To complement that experience,
she has also taken many Advanced Placement and honors classes, including
psychology, English literature and English.
Some of the honors Vi-An has received include the Knight Valor Community
Service Award, the National Merit Commendation, the Northwestern University
Merit Scholarship and the Washington State Honors Award. She also recently
won the $5,000 Newhouse Scholarship for Journalism from the Asian American
Journalists Association.
Vi-An graduated with a 3.9 grade-point average and will be attending
Northwestern University in the fall.
KeFei Yin
Roosevelt High School
KeFei emigrated from China only three years ago. Despite language obstacles, he took Advanced Placement classes in calculus, U.S. history, U.S. government, statistics, comparative government and chemistry during his junior and senior years. He graduated with a 3.7 grade-point average and received the Northwest Association of Special Programs Scholastic Achievement Award.
But his efforts were not limited to academics; KeFei also contributed time to extracurricular activities that benefit his high school and the community. KeFei was vice president of the Taiwanese Club and secretary of the Philosophy Club. He also participated in the Upward Bound program, Chess Club, Math Club, track and wrestling. He also volunteered for the Seattle Public Library, North Seattle Community College’s admission registration office and a University of Washington book auction.
This fall he will attend the University of Washington.
Heansang Chhay
Cleveland High School
“A strong society starts from the healthy condition of its members.” These are words Heansang lives by as she works to become a nurse. She currently volunteers as a medical records clerk at Rainier Park Medical Clinic. She received an Award for Excellence in her health class.
Heansang also received an award given by the Seattle Public Schools and Rotary Club of Seattle, and a scholarship from the Cleveland High School Alumni Association.
Heansang graduated with a 3.8 grade-point average and plans to attend community college after graduation. She hopes to eventually transfer to the University of Washington to complete her nursing degree.
Kizamu Tsutakawa
Summit K-12
Not only does Kizamu have a 3.7 grade-point average to be proud of, but also an extensive list of extracurricular activities that showcases his leadership, service to the community and athletic abilities.
Kizamu was a Running Start student at Seattle Central Community College his senior year, as well as a participant in a high school leadership group. He was also the stage manager for Summit’s musical theater production of “Anything Goes.”
His community service includes participation in the “Save Summit K-12” campaign, as well as volunteer positions as assistant coach for Summit girls’ middle school soccer team and for a U-7 boys’ soccer team.
But his real passion is playing soccer. He played for the Nathan Hale High School soccer team for four years and hopes to continue playing in college. He will attend Pacific University in Oregon in the fall.
Josephine Bernice Garcia
Squalicum High School
Josephine is no stranger to leadership and responsibility. She was an active participant in student government, serving as president her senior year. She also led the Rotary Interact Service Club for two years.
For her senior project, she founded a student team for Operation Smile, a worldwide organization that provides free reconstructive surgery for children with cleft palates. Her team raised enough money to provide surgeries for almost 14 children in developing countries. Josephine’s success helped earn her Toyota’s National Community Scholar award, which was given to only 12 students from a nomination pool of 800.
Although she is the youngest in her class of 246 seniors, Josephine graduated as valedictorian with a 4.0 grade-point average. She will attend the University of Washington. Her goals are to go premed and become a doctor who is committed to community outreach.
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