Yearly Archives: 2015

• As We Go On, We’ll Remember….AALEAD’s End of the Year BBQ

  By Antwoine Johnson, MD Middle School Program Coordinator Photos Courtesy of Chelsea Iorlano, Development & Communications Associate

  All good things must come to an end and that is exactly what this year was…..a good thing.

  Filled with memories, trials, ups and downs, strengthened friendships, amazing food, and a plethora of events, AALEAD bid farewell to the 2014-2015 school year and wrapped it up with the End of the Year BBQ. 80 youth, parents and staff

• Greetings from the New AALEAD Program Director

  By Mylynh Nguyen, Program Director Photos courtesy of Mylynh Nguyen Dear Friends and Families of AALEAD, I am delighted to join the AALEAD team to serve as the new Program Director. I started in this new role on June 9th, and just within a few short days, I have had the honor of witnessing the sincere dedication of the AALEAD staff and the exuberance of our some of our youngest elementary school youth. I have also already had the great pleasure of meeting some AALEAD parents and guardians. I

• Back at AALEAD!

  By Neel Saxena, Development & Communications Director Photos Courtesy of Neel Saxena Hello AALEAD family, I am excited to be back after a ten year stint in the DC Mayor’s Office, rejoining as the Development & Communications Director. I have seen AALEAD grow and thrive during my time away and will bring my energy and experience to continue the wonderful work. I am the son of two immigrant parents who came to the US to study in the 1960s and went back to India to have me in 1978. We c

• Thank You for Joining Us!

  By Sharon Choi, AALEAD Staff Photos Courtesy of Silvy Song, Photographer & AALEAD Staff Asian American LEAD (AALEAD) hosted our 16th Annual Dinner on Wednesday evening at the Silver Spring Civic Center in downtown Silver Spring. Thank you to everyone who came to join us in our celebration of AALEAD's mission, impact, community, and most importantly, our youth!

• Waves of Change: A Reflection of the Year

  By Antwoine Johnson, MD Middle School Program Coordinator Photos Courtesy of AALEAD Staff “Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” ― Søren Kierkegaard This has been a very interesting year, for both me and the youth at Loiederman and Newport Mill, where I am the coordinator. At both schools we received new crowds of youth that were very different from the ones that were in programs

• AALEAD – A Constant in Our Lives!

  By Shaima Ahmad VA High School Program Coordinator Photos Courtesy of Shaima Ahmad Yesterday, Anandale High School AALEADers came together and reminisced about their past year with AALEAD. Surely, our youth have come along way since they started their journey back in September.  The over all consensus was that this year was full of opportunities and experiences that they may not have experienced outside of AALEAD. The youth remembered the team building activities they took part  in the beginn

• Message from the ED: May Inspiration

  This month I have been lucky to experience several reminders about why we do this work. I have had the opportunity to interact with 4 of our alumni and have seen them shine. More than that, they all credit AALEAD for developing their confidence and giving them the opportunities to lead. On May 8, AALEAD hosted a wonderful event with UMD basketball player, Varun Ram. Varun is a great role model for our

• See You Next Week!

  

  We are so excited for our 16th Annual Dinner on Wednesday, June 3, 2015--exactly a week from today! We will kick o

• Food and Fun: Learning through Eating

  By Keo Xiong, MD Middle School Program Coordinator Photos Courtesy of Keo Xiong, MD Middle School Program Coordinator "What are we doing today?" asks a youth entering the room as I am writing the agenda on the classroom board. "Are we making food today?" shouts another youth from the doorway. I hear these two questions daily. As expected, middle school youth are most excited about our in-class food and cooking lesson plans. As one youth remarked, "I like cooking activities because it shows me

• MDMS & MDHS: A Tour of High School

  By Melor Suhaimi, MD Programs Manager Photos by AALEAD Staff Transitions can be tough and with the end of the school year coming to an end, many of our AALEAD youth are transitioning from middle school to high school. This past week, AALEAD's MD high school programs at Einstein and Blair High School offered a tour of their schools for our youth at Newport Mill, Eastern, and Argyle Middle Schools. The tour kicked off with an opportunity for middle school youth to share what they think high sch