nwasianweekly.com
Dec. 29, 2007

Photo by Ann-Marie Stillion

James Sun interacts with young audience members after his talk at the University of Washington on April 26, 2007. The Internet entrepreneur was the last person fired by Donald Trump in the season finale of “The Apprentice: Los Angeles.”

Top Stories of 2007

Would-be apprentice: ‘I was shocked’

By James Tabafunda
Northwest Asian Weekly
May 5, 2007

James Sun fully expected to hear Donald Trump utter, “You’re hired,” to him during the April 22 season finale of “The Apprentice: Los Angeles.” Instead, the local Internet entrepreneur who demonstrated leadership and creativity on the show heard:

“James, you’re fired.”

In front of a live television audience, the real-estate mogul decided to take on 32-year-old Los Angeles lawyer Stefani Schaeffer as his newest apprentice.

Sun, 30, was stunned, though he didn’t show it on TV.

Four days later, after returning home to Redmond, Sun made his first public appearance to discuss what happened. He chose his alma mater, the University of Washington, as the location. Billed as “‘The Apprentice’ and Beyond: Local CEO and Business School Alum Talks About His Post-UW Adventures,” the talk was organized by the UW Business School and the UW Alumni Association as part of Washington Weekend, the annual universitywide open house.

Sun said he wanted to tell UW students what he has learned as an immigrant in America, how he has applied his college education and, of course, what it was like to finish second on “The Apprentice.”

“Take advantage of your four years here,” Sun advised the young people who gathered at Kane Hall to hear him speak. Most of the 300 audience members were Asian American college students.

While studying at the UW, Sun also started a business — a technology investment fund using $5,000 in seed money. By the time he received his bachelor’s degree in business and computer information systems in 1999, his business had grown to be worth more than $2 million.

Sun’s wife and parents were in the audience at the Hollywood Bowl when Trump announced his decision, and they were with him again at the UW talk.

“I’ve never been fired in my life,” Sun acknowledged. “What happens is that your gut just goes right down. Your stomach just drops. It’s kind of like when you get pulled over by a cop.”

Sun’s motivations for signing up for the rigorous 14-week job interview? Even though he lost, it turned out to be a “great adventure” in front of 9 million viewers, he said. It also allowed him to show his two daughters, ages 3 and 1, “that they can achieve anything in the world if they put their minds to it.”

Sun admits he does not know why he was fired. He’s still waiting for a more detailed explanation from Trump’s publicists than the one The Donald gave him on the show.

“There were certain things and certain dialogue that you gave during the course, and you know what I’m talking about, that bothered me very much,” Trump told Sun right before he fired him.

Viewers were just as confused by that mysterious “dialogue” as Sun was. Some bloggers have speculated that Trump was irked because Sun had mentioned the name of his company earlier in the show.

Following the firing, Sun stayed up until 2:30 a.m. to write down his “analysis,” a four-page blog entry at Zoodango.com, the new online networking company he founded.

As he waits for an official explanation, his next project is already getting off the ground. He and fellow “Apprentice” contestant Aaron Altscher are producing an Internet TV show that will debut this month.

Several audience members said they found his talk fascinating. Sun “is so much high energy and so genuine and honest along the way,” said Peter Dukes, associate dean for undergraduate programs at the UW Business School. Not only was it interesting to hear about Sun’s experiences on “The Apprentice,” but he also offered good advice to young people, Dukes said.

As an immigrant who came to the United States in 1980 from Seoul, South Korea, Sun remembers the racism both he and his family faced while living in Houston. “When you see your parents having the heartache that they go through because they’re facing racism, then it hits home,” said Sun. Their circumstances — including his parents’ unfamiliarity with the English language — presented many challenges for the family.

Following the talk, Sun acknowledged that he has received thousands of e-mails from the blogging community suggesting that Seung-Hui Cho’s April 16 shooting rampage at Virginia Tech University affected the outcome of “The Apprentice.” Like Sun, Cho is of Korean descent.

“I grew up facing enough racism to not fall victim to it anymore, and so that’s not a speculation that I like entertaining at all. … Could some of that be true? Who knows?” said Sun.

Maureen Crawford, associate director for alumni relations at the UW Business School, had no idea how far Sun would get on the show when she invited him last August to speak at the recent UW festivities. She said she supports Sun’s message of encouraging students to network and be well rounded.

“Those are messages they get from us, but to hear it from James Sun, who is not too much older than them, I think it’s very meaningful for students,” said Crawford.

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