By Charles Kuo, AALEAD DC Elementary School Program Coordinator, and Lisa, AALEAD Youth Photos Courtesy of AALEAD Staff As we approach the end of the school year, AALEAD staff and youth reflect on the memories we have made this past year. We also congratulate many of our youth who are transitioning to new schools. Lisa, a 5th grader at AALEAD Bancroft, has been a part of AALEAD for the past four years and will be going to middle school in the fall. In this int
By Charles Kuo, DC Elementary School Program Coordinator Photos Courtesy of AALEAD Staff
By Charles Kuo, DC Elementary School Program Coordinator Photos Courtesy of AALEAD Staff Transitions are difficult at any age. During transitional periods, we are faced with making decisions that most definitely affect our futures. The process of changing from one state to another can produce stress and anxiety. One of the biggest transitions a youth faces is the transition from el
By Día Bùi, DC Middle & High School Programs Coordinator Photos Courtesy of Día Bùi
By Stephanie Lim & Tina Ngo, AALEAD Staff Photos Courtesy of Stephanie Lim, AALEAD Staff As we kick off the start of a new school year, Asian American LEAD (AALEAD) staff are always excited to reunite with youth, but also, another very important part of our AALEAD family - our volunteers. This month's spotlight focuses on Jimmy, an AALEAD volunteer who started working with us in October 2012 at the beginning of his college career. Jimmy is now a senior at the University of Maryland C
By Charles Kuo, DC Elementary School Coordinator Photos Courtesy of AALEAD Staff This year AALEAD’S DC Elementary school program will highlight the importance of Discovery! The theme of "Discovery" promotes learning and growth. Our hope this year is to empower our youth to discover the world around them and approach learning in a fun and exciting way. Many of our youth will embark on their very own "Discovery Map", where they will learn through seven thematic units focused on a variety
By Pallavi Rudraraju, DC Elementary School Summer Program Intern Photos Courtesy of AALEAD Staff I distinctly remember the emotions that washed over me when I received Tina’s e-mail offer to join the Asian American LEAD (AALEAD) team for the summer: shock, excitement, eagerness, and a little bit of nervousness. I was thrilled to accept for so many reasons, but mostly because working with AALEAD would mean combining two of my life goals: youth development through teaching and Asian American i
By Madeline Sumida, Elementary Program Teacher & Site Coordinator Photos Courtesy of Madeline Sumida As the year comes to a close, the Bancroft AALEADers are taking time to celebrate, reflect upon what they’ve experienced, and express anxieties and hopes for the future. Both classes have explored the theme of super powers and using fantasy to identify individual students’ strengths and interests. We’ve looked at heroic narratives and developed our own epic stories to illustrate and di
By Pallavi Rudraraju, DC Elementary School Summer Program Intern Photos Courtesy of Pallavi Rudraraju, DC Elementary School Summer Program Intern Hi, all! I'm Pallavi Rudraraju, a rising junior at the College of William and Mary. I have self-designed an Asian American Studies major and am considering double majoring in South Asian Studies as well. As important as studies are to me, I consider my extracurricular activities to be an integral aspect of my college experience. As president of the H
By Madeline Sumida, Elementary Program Teacher & Site Coordinator Photos Courtesy of Madeline Sumida
The Kindergarten through second grade AALEAD team earned artistic accolades for the class submission to the 15th Annual Mt. Pleasant Youth Arts Fair. At a special reception held at the Mount Pleasant Neighborhood Library, judges announced that the AALEAD artwork had earned 15 out of 15 possible points and a prominent display in the children’s section