43 minute read
Alumni Feature Stories
ALUMNI AIDING COMMUNITIES DURING COVID-19
By Connie Ma, Alumni and Community Outreach Officer
As the COVID-19 pandemic has spread to touch almost every aspect of our lives, many TAS alumni have found themselves involved in helping their communities in unexpected ways. Four alumni share their individual experiences as a public health nurse, a Red Cross caseworker, an EMT, and a contact tracer. These stories are an example of resilience in the face of adversity and remind us to recommit to helping each other through this global crisis.
Sheena Sihota ’99 has been a public health nurse since 2014, working in child and maternal health at the Health and Human Services for the County of San Diego. “We visit first-time moms to help them with whatever they need, help them be self-sufficient and leave abusive situations if they need, and reduce the likelihood for child abuse.” Sheena’s work has a personal story behind it. “Working in child and maternal health has always been my passion. I started nursing school when my oldest was a year old, so I went through the peri-partum phase with no medical background. I’ve been where some of the moms I’ve worked with have been.”
On a typical day before the pandemic, Sheena would visit three to four mothers for one to two hours at a time, weighing and measuring kids and answering any questions that the mother had about starting solid food, what kind of diapers are best, developmental assessments, help with breastfeeding, and much more. Now, Sheena works primarily over the phone. “At the beginning of the pandemic, we were telehealth all the time. Connecting with people over video and phone is difficult. I know people feel trapped because they can’t go out, and there’s not the usual care and support they expect from their parents. I know it’s been hard for a lot of people. For example, childcare in San Diego can be quite expensive, like $2,000 per month for one child. It can be your entire paycheck.” Another part of Sheena’s job is running a COVID hotel. “We are responsible for taking people from the hospital to a hotel. Some have tested positive or are symptomatic but can take care of themselves. Others have been exposed to confirmed positives and need a place to isolate for 14 days. Sometimes, they don’t have their own bedroom or a space to quarantine from their family, so they come here. In the fall, we went from having 20 requests a day to more than 100 requests a day.” Though she is not a front-line doctor or nurse working in a hospital, Sheena has also seen her share of the devastation that the virus can wreak. “I know some people who think it’s a hoax, but I’ve literally seen a thirty-year old person turn blue before my eyes,” Sheena noted soberly. At least for her, the pandemic has had a strong silver lining. “Pre-COVID, I didn’t see my children very often, only when I brought them to school and picked them up. Though we’re now doing learning and work separately at home, I see them all the time.”
THE PUBLIC HEALTH NURSE
Sheena Sihota ’99 is a public health nurse who has been working on the COVID-19 front lines.
Sheena Sihota ’99
Andrew Bookbinder ’15 has seen the need for help firsthand. After graduating from college, Andrew moved to Los Angeles in 2019 to work for the Red Cross as a caseworker doing housing advocacy for individuals or families who have been impacted by disasters. “When you experience a home fire, there’s no designated government agency that responds to you,” Andrew explains. “As a well-funded non-profit, we try to serve immediate needs of people who have been impacted by disasters and step into that role. We provide financial assistance and partner with organizations to get them rehoused and back on their feet.” The pandemic has reshaped Andrew’s work; not only is he restricted to meeting clients over the phone or video, but he also has fewer avenues of aid to offer. “Our partner organizations and agencies like the Department of Social Services, Legal Aid Foundation,
or the Salvation Army, have all scaled back services, cut hours, or temporarily closed, all at a time when the demand for resources is skyrocketing. Even food banks have scaled back because their volunteers tend to be older. We are broadening our outreach to different organizations and figuring out creative solutions, but there’s less help available overall.” Andrew sees this as an extension of the public interest work he would like to pursue throughout his career. “As caseworkers, we can advocate for our clients and provide financial assistance. Sometimes, we can really make a difference. Last week, I worked with a new landlord to reduce the security deposit and Andrew Bookbinder ’15 first month’s rent for my clients, and that’s incredibly gratifying. Knowing that I’m helping is phenomenal.” After the pandemic started, Andrew actually deferred law school for a year to do more client advocacy work with the Red Cross. “When I first moved to LA, I had an inkling of the housing crisis here. But working here in the community has really changed my understanding of the scope of the problem and the failure to address it on a large scale. This has strengthened my resolve to work in public interest law.” In the fall of 2021, Andrew will start law school at the University of Pennsylvania as a Toll Public Interest Scholar.
Andrew Bookbinder ’15 (furthest right in group photo) is a Red Cross caseworker in the Los Angeles area.
THE EMT
For the past four years, Jeremiah “Jerry” Hsu ’17 has been an emergency medical technician or an EMT for the Berkeley Medical Reserve Corps (Berkeley MRC). In May 2020, Jerry assumed the directorship of the corps as a senior at UC Berkeley. Like many university EMT groups, Jerry and his fellow students often staffed campus events and sporting events, but unlike most university groups, Berkeley MRC is chartered as a federal program and can be deployed by the university, local, or state authorities to respond to disasters. They have been active throughout the pandemic, responding to a wide range of needs in California.
“In April, we were activated by the City of Berkeley to staff their COVID-testing center for essential workers, vulnerable populations, and healthcare workers. Our EMTs did nasal swabs and logistics until September. Starting in May, we deployed people to skilled nursing facilities when RNs [registered nurses] would test positive, and their whole team needed to isolate. In September, COVID-19 deaths in skilled nursing facilities accounted for as much of 37% of our state total, which was made worse by the staffing shortages.” In July, Jerry and fellow Berkeley MRC members were deployed by the California Medical Assistance Team to Tulare County. “For two weeks, we worked in a gigantic gym that acted as an overflow site for hospitals, treating low acuity COVID-19 patients. We worked 12 hours on, 12 hours off, and we slept on cots.” During the fall, Berkeley MRC also responded to wildfires by deploying to shelters and providing medical aid in Santa Cruz County. As of February 2021, they are working with the Berkeley Fire Department to administer vaccines at the City’s first community mass vaccination site. “As EMTs, we’re entry level medical providers, and
Jerry Hsu ’17
Berkley MRC members are administering vaccines in California.
in California, our scope is quite limited. This is the first time in the history of the U.S. that we’re being allowed to give vaccines,” notes Jerry. The lowest point for Jerry and his fellow corps members was in May and June of 2020. “This isn’t what we signed up to do. Most students become EMTs because they’re pre-med, and they do work like stabilizing critical trauma patients, reversing overdoses, or performing CPR on the street. All of a sudden, we’re being deployed to bedsides in skilled nursing facilities with COVID outbreaks and parking lots to swab patients, during a national PPE shortage that forced us to reuse N-95s, isolation gowns, and face shields for days and weeks. We’re also students with our own lives, and that sudden transition to online classes was hard for everyone.” Jerry has picked up some unexpected lessons as a part of this work experience that he feels will apply to any industry he chooses to work in. “I’ve learned to work with people who have much more experience than me. I’ve been thrust into this situation where I’m working with people who have decades of experience in emergency medicine and management, and we’re sitting at the same table discussing a plan. Talk about imposter syndrome!” Jerry laughs. “I was initially hesitant to voice my opinions, because especially with COVID, you don’t want to get it wrong and waste people’s time. But in this unprecedented kind of situation, you realize everyone around you is also figuring things out on the fly, so it’s ok to speak up and share how you can help. For a long time, I thought it would be off the table for EMTs to administer vaccines, but once I proposed it, we got the ball rolling really quickly. When you feel uncertain in these unprecedented situations, that’s when you actually have the most flexibility to propose new ideas.”
Jerry Hsu ’17 (far left) and fellow Berkeley MRC members.
THE CONTACT TRACER
In fall of 2020, Leon Yim ’16 was not working at the cancer immunology lab he expected to start at after graduating from MIT. Instead, while waiting for a hiring freeze at school to end, he found himself working as a COVID-19 contact tracer for the MIT community. Leon’s work officially began in November, just as the U.S. began to experience a winter surge of COVID-19 cases. “Here, we have a very robust COVID-testing program, where people test once or twice a week depending on how often they access campus. When I started, I took the Johns Hopkins Coursera course on contact tracing 101, which defines terms like quarantine, isolation, close contact, why isolate for 14 versus 10 days, etc. I started by checking in on people who were already in quarantine to see if they had symptoms after a close encounter with a positive case. But very
quickly, because of the caseload, I started making the initial call to inform people they tested positive or was a close contact.” As a contact tracer on the ground, Leon worked 9 AM to 5 PM most days, but the actual workload was off set from that schedule. Because testing began in the morning, they received new positive results in the afternoon. “At 4 PM, that’s when the day really starts. You start seeing new cases, and you get their basic demographics and information. As soon as you’re on the call and get a few names as close contacts, you’ll quickly start new sheets for your co-workers to divide up the work; after a few hours, we come back and cross-reference each other’s sheets to get a better picture. Contact tracing depends on Leon Yim ’16 honesty. We don’t know anything about you if you don’t share it.” While MIT has a very liberal leave policy where people can take up to 10 days of leave with pay, Leon
Leon Yim ’16 worked as a contact tracer for MIT Medical (Photo by MIT Medical).
still makes many calls where people are automatically worried about how to make ends meet. “When you’re on a call and you’re hearing the person you’re talking to having to stop to catch their breath between sentences, those calls are always hard to make. It’s hard to tell a single father with an autistic daughter to isolate, because he can’t.”
Working as a contact tracer has strengthened Leon’s aspiration to work in medicine. “It is a phenomenal clinical experience to have this direct relationship with patients. I call them every day. I deliver medical packages to those in quarantine. I can ask them questions and answer questions. People want to know about our policies, the science behind the testing, possible false-positives.” The experience has also helped him learn some new skills. “With my generation, growing up with the Internet, people have this weird anxiety about picking up the phone. But I staff our COVID hotline sometimes and get occasional calls from far-away places like Nebraska. So I have to respond on my feet and improve my communication with people.” As of spring 2021, Leon has finally started his research job in the cancer immunology lab, but he still helps out with the contact tracing team. As a part of his work, he created a mastersheet, which contains all the positive cases and close contact they are tracing and their important notes, and helps MIT with their mandatory reporting to the state government. “Figuring out what tools work best for us has been mission critical, and I’m continuing to work on it, because when you develop last-minute software solutions during a pandemic, it’s never perfect.”
MOVING FORWARD
The pandemic has taught many of us different lessons which we are carrying forward with us, whether it is about our communities or ourselves.
Sheena reflects on the importance of taking care of our community. “I think we need to look out for the people who don’t have the same support and coping skills that we have and do our best to support them. People need to be reminded to take care of each other.” Andrew hopes that people will come back to the lessons they were taught at school. “Don’t forget the message of service that we’re given on our way out at TAS. Enduring the draw of money and other opportunities is hard, but there’s always a need in the world for service. People who don’t have a voice will always be treated as lesser, so people who do have a voice should keep advocating for them.” Jerry has a new perspective on his identity and roots. “As TAS alumni, a lot of us think of ourselves as global citizens, and we don’t really get attached to a certain place. I’ve had to deal with this struggle like many of my classmates, between coming home to Taiwan where it’s safe or staying in Berkeley. What I’ve learned is that you do have to adopt a community to invest in and care about in order to be motivated to do this type of work. I can only do the work I’m doing in relation to COVID if I care deeply about Berkeley, and I didn’t expect myself to care that much until I started doing this.” As important as his work has been, Leon knows its limitations. “People have a false sense of security from being in their quarantine bubble or being regularly tested, but you’ll continue to test negative until you don’t. Testing doesn’t prevent transmission. We don’t even know if the vaccine does that. This has gone on for a long time, and people aren’t necessarily as vigilant as they were. The sooner we all work together, the sooner we can leave this behind.”
TIFFANY HUANG ’08 BRINGS BLACK IN ASIA VOICES TO A BROADER AUDIENCE
By Connie Ma, Alumni and Community Outreach Officer
Tiffany Huang ’08 experienced culture shock for the first time moving from Taipei to Omaha, Nebraska, at the age of 16. After being among so many Taiwanese American peers at Taipei American School, Tiffany felt like a fish out of water in Nebraska, questioning if she really knew what it was to be Asian American. Her experiences convinced her of the importance of storytelling. In 2018, Tiffany started Spill Stories (https://www.spillstories.club/), a storytelling platform that elevates intersectional stories for women of color.
Most recently, in July 2020, Tiffany published “Black in Asia,” a compilation of 23 stories from Black writers who have lived in Asia. By publishing and sharing these stories, Tiffany hopes to amplify the voices of other women of color and at the same time broaden experiences for third culture kids like her who grew up in Taiwan.
Tiffany’s interest in writing started from an early age. “I attended fourth through tenth grade at TAS, and my favorite subjects were the humanities,” remembers Tiffany. “I was a mediocre student, but Ms. Aleasha Morris was able to tease out my talent in writing. In eighth grade, she taught us different units of creative writing and poetry. At the end of the school year, when I was awarded the award for English and walked across the stage, that was one of the defining moments of my life at TAS. As someone who was okay academically but not the best, this was the first time I felt like I was the best at something, and that gave me a lot of motivation that I could really excel.” Tiffany’s journey took a turn after tenth grade. “After TAS, I finished high school in Nebraska. A lot of people in Omaha wondered, ’Oh, you’re from Taiwan, why are you speaking English?’ And that was a step above the people who didn’t know Taiwan from Thailand.”
The experience of attending high school in a majority-white environment, as one of the only Asian Americans, was a jarring one for Tiffany, but one that had a silver lining. “I found that my time at TAS didn’t prepare me to mingle with people who aren’t Asian American or who aren’t from a certain kind of background. After attending high school in Omaha, I felt like I had better social skills because I was forced to learn, so when I went to the University of Michigan, it was really easy for me to make friends. After college, Tiffany started working in management consulting, moved into user experience design, and is now working in marketing. She moved back to Asia in 2015, working for Marriott International in Hong Kong in the Asia Pacific region. She has always kept her interest in storytelling and amplifying the voices of people who had different experiences. “In 2018, I found myself wanting to carve out a space to talk about what people were really thinking and feeling because it’s easy to get caught up in this superficial atmosphere in Hong Kong where people are sizing you up all the time. I also have always been hyper-aware of my identity as an Asian American and wanted to elevate stories of non-white women whose voices are underrepresented in pop culture.” Thus, Spill Stories was born. Through Instagram posts (https://www.instagram.
Tiffany Huang ’08 founded Spill Stories which published Black in Asia.
Black in Asia had a Taipei reading with two authors in September 2020.
com/spillstories/), Tiffany has shared over 130 stories from over 110 writers, hailing from cities in Asia and the U.S. like Hong Kong, Seoul, Taipei, New York City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. As discussions in the U.S. around racial identity gained broader awareness, Tiffany began to feel it was important to use the platform to amplify the voice of Black writers. In March 2020, Tiffany invited Boipelo Sweswane, a South African woman living in Seoul, to manage a writing workshop for Black writers in Asia to write about their experiences. In a Spill Stories writing workshop, writers come to write and interpret prompts however they like. After writing for 40 minutes, each person reads their piece aloud, and other participants provide feedback, giving suggestions on how to make the piece stronger through more character development or a different ending. “I feel like these workshops often feel like therapy sessions,” Tiffany joked. After George Floyd’s murder in May 2020 and the spread of the Black Lives Matter movement, Tiffany decided it was time to bring these stories to a broader audience. They began with six stories, but more writers soon chimed in with their own stories, and thus, “Black in Asia” was born. The book encompasses 23 non-fiction diaspora stories from 22 writers who have lived in Asia. They recount their experiences of what it means to be Black in Asia; some are sad or whimsical, some are joyful and empowering. One woman in Myanmar writes about managing her kinky hair in Asia and how much effort it took her to create her own hair care products. A man in Shanghai writes about his career in modeling and his experience with Chinese people, who were curious about whether he was grateful to be lighter-skinned. A woman in Seoul writes about how a hospital stay led to becoming friends with the elderly Korean women who shared her ward. A woman in Taiwan writes about meeting a souvenir vendor in Jiufen, who prayed for her to Buddha to make her skin whiter so she could find a job in Taiwan. The book was published in late July 2020 and has sold over 600 copies already, mostly through Amazon. Tiffany is enthused about the positive reception so far and hopes to get the book translated into Chinese in the future to reach even more readers.
She hopes “Black in Asia” can be an opportunity for the TAS community to learn more about other people’s experiences. “You need that education on how to move through a diverse society in the U.S. or anywhere,” Tiffany concludes. “Because education has done you a disservice if you’re book smart but don’t know how to interact with people.” “Black in Asia” is available internationally through Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/Black-Asia-SpillStories-Anthology-ebook/dp/B08DN5VCHP/).
A diverse audience gathered to hear stories from Black in Asia during the Taipei reading in September 2020.
DARRYL LOKE ’17 WINS MID-ATLANTIC EMMY AWARD FOR HIS COLLEGE FILM “STRAYS”
By Sabrina C. ’21 and Lana L. ’22, The Blue and Gold.
During his time at TAS, Darryl Loke '17 led his grade to multiple victories in the Spirit Week class video competitions. They were just a starting point of his ongoing Emmy-winning career in filmmaking. He is currently at Temple University, studying psychology to delve into the human condition of films and ultimately reach a wider audience. Darryl’s passion for filmmaking began during his freshman year at TAS, when his interest in cameras led him to Mr. Tobie Openshaw, TAS video production specialist. “Mr. Openshaw gave me a lot of opportunities and gave me access to the film equipment at TAS, which was very helpful,” Darryl said. He took advantage of them to produce class videos and short films that Mr. Openshaw allowed him to showcase in student assemblies.
His first film that garnered a lot of attention was the freshman class spirit week video, which he directed and filmed along with one of his friends in 2014. The video won first place, much to the shock of the upperclassmen, but more importantly helped Darryl create a stronger connection with his peers. “I feel like after that people just understood who I was and how I saw the class, and I just wanted to showcase that and share it with everyone,” Darryl said. “It was sort of my calling.” The class video did more than just kickstart Darryl’s filmmaking journey though; his passion helped inspire Mr. Jaami Franklin, Mr. Brett Barrus, and Mr. Openshaw to start the high school film program, which started as an introduction course. “At first, they would teach us the common concepts of films like using cameras and setting up a shot and how to tell stories,” Darryl said. “Later, they started bringing out things like field trips.” The film trips to various places ranging from the outskirts of Taipei to Berlin served as a huge part of Darryl’s high school experience, and the team was able to win numerous competitions with their creations. “All those trips gave me a very worldly view, and it is amazing to see how rapidly the film program innovated,” Darryl said. Filmmaking became Darryl’s priority and greatest interest, and he lost track of time while working on his projects more times than he could count. “In 2017, I actually held the record at school for the most tardies,” Darryl said. “I had detention almost every lunchtime because I’d always show up late to class from the film studio, but I think it was worth it.”
Darryl’s filmmaking projects allowed him to learn a lot about teamwork while also inspiring others to join the program, which in turn helped him grow as a person. “I just kept putting my work out there and it helped me gain new connections with people while learning how different people see different things,” Darryl said.
Darryl Loke ’17
“Filmmaking is not a solo piece of art, you have to make it with your team.” After TAS, Darryl enrolled at Temple University, where he felt he adapted to the American culture more readily compared to the “Tiger Babies” around him, because he had spent his childhood in a different country every four years. When he realized that he had limited his scope of interests and knowledge to film since eighth grade, he chose to major in psychology. “I feel like [psychology] benefits me and my films,” Darryl said. “Almost every film consists of humans. … Psychology allows me to delve into people’s roots because I understand how to approach them better.”
Since his freshman year at college, Darryl has prioritized getting to know diverse people after filmmaking helped him realize the value of relationships and networks. His film producer roommate, who invited him to the Emmy-winning film team as a cinematographer, is one of the people he met as a result of this endeavor.
From this invitation, Darryl’s casual offer to help write the script quickly turned into a six-hour task everyday, and he was eventually offered the role of director and writer. He attributes this to his ability to creatively connect with people. “When I came into the project, I was able to instantly connect with the original writer of the film,” he said. “Making a film is all about finding the right people who vibe with you emotionally and creatively.” “Strays” is a short film about Shane Shephard, a young adult who inherits a family-owned thrift shop after the death of his mother. The film explores his “failed attempts to help people as he turns to unconventional methods in order to prevent others from feeling his pain” through encountering unusual customers that stop by the shop one day. Darryl’s team submitted this film to the festival circuit and received a Mid-Atlantic Emmy award in the college division. “I definitely had a very ambitious goal in mind. I wanted [the film] to be seen by a big name,” Darryl said. “So hearing that we had won this award was great.” Time and money were the biggest challenges his team faced. The film had an extraordinarily low budget of USD$2000 to USD$3000, and it was funded independently by many people. Darryl’s extensive exposure to books and films played a key role in recruiting actors, as he used them as conversation starters to connect with others. “Seventy percent of making a good scene has to do with just getting to know people, which is why I think it’s very important to be very inspired,” he said. “It’s an easy way to work with people in any career.” He found the most value in working with local Philadelphians and actors from various states from the entire process of filming “Strays”. “Acting is a very emotional process,” he reiterated, “So I was forced to really get to know their backgrounds and where their emotions are”.
Now in his senior year at Temple, Darryl ultimately hopes to make a career in filmmaking and expand his audience. “I feel like [winning the Emmy] solidified that I will always be in film because I saw that my work does impact a lot of people,” he said. “I’m not striving to win more awards. My main goal is to reach more people [and get them to] understand who I am, and hopefully [my films] will make them happy.”
For students who want to become filmmakers, Darryl urges them to try to become “Renaissance men” and women. “The most important thing,” he believes, “is making sure you are very inspired and you consume a lot of different things. Read books, play video games, play sports, read philosophy, just know a lot of things about a lot of different topics”. Check out “Strays” on www.templetv.net, and see more of Darryl’s work and past class videos on his YouTube channel (darrylloke).
Our Art, Our Voices (2015), winner of the 2016 THIMUN Northwestern-Qatar Film Festival.
Strays (2019) won a 2019 Student Emmy for College-University Student Production - Long Form.
COLLEGE DURING COVID BY THE CLASS OF 2020 CLASS AGENTS
Emily’s desktop where she is attending college virtually. Photo courtesy of Emily Hsu ‘20.
By Emily Hsu '20 and Yan Ying Mor '20, Class of 2020 Class Agents
Emily Hsu ’20 is a freshman at Stanford University pursuing a major in science, technology, and society. Yan Ying Mor ’20 is a freshman at the University of Chicago pursuing a public policy major. They have both been attending college remotely from Taipei since the beginning of the school year. Both Emily and Yan Ying hope to go to campus in the fall of 2021.
As we click “submit” on our last Canvas assessments, we breathe a sigh of relief as the first quarter of college comes to an end. Fall quarter had gone by in a flash. Without the traditional orientation week, move-in day, and social events, it feels as though college never started.
With COVID-19 at its peak in the United States, many TAS alumni have opted to take class remotely from Taiwan. Online learning comes with its ups and downs. For those who choose or are required to attend classes synchronously, it means staying up for gruelling hours with heavy ramifications on mental and physical health. 24/7 UberEats options become our sole food source and fatigue becomes a constant companion as one’s circadian rhythm is misaligned with daylight hours. Even noting down meeting times has become a hassle, considering the drastically different time zones and the puzzle that is daylight saving time. Fortunately, both of us have the option of watching lecture recordings asynchronously, offering us newfound flexibility in our work schedules. Nevertheless, our first quarter of college has become a cycle of mildly awkward Zoom calls broken up by meals and the occasional study session with high school friends. As a result of the uncertainty and stress surrounding the pandemic, college professors have adjusted their curriculums to adapt to online learning. For example, at Stanford, formal midterms or finals were replaced with personal projects and biweekly quizzes. At UChicago, humanities seminars, the heart of the firstyear experience, were partially migrated to discussion modules on Canvas. In general, professors have been generous with extending deadlines for international students -- recognizing the stress of learning in dramatically different time zones. Especially during election week, the shared wave of apprehension between professors and students alike, led to numerous assignment extensions. However, online assessments still come with its challenges. For Emily’s linear algebra class, questions became more difficult due to the open-note, openinternet nature of the quizzes, and the multiple-choice format is less sympathetic towards partially correct answers. For Yan Ying’s calculus class, close note assessments are regulated by strict guidelines, requiring students to make their desk clearly visible through their computers’ webcam frame with close monitoring throughout the exam by the professor. Remote learning aside, we have found college academics to be much more rewarding and challenging than high school. As we browsed our respective course catalogs, our fall quarter course “wishlists” grew longer,
quickly expanding beyond the limits of what we were permitted to take in a single quarter. From “Busting Energy Myths” to “Physics for Future Presidents,” the specialization of courses at the university-level lay in stark contrast with the standardized nature of the high school core. Emily took this opportunity to enroll in “Technology and the 2020 Election” this past fall and engaged in exciting discussions on online filter bubbles and its effects on polarization among many other topics with guest speakers from Twitter, Facebook, and government agencies. Yan Ying particularly enjoys her social science core sequence “Self, Culture, and Society”, where she analyzed the modern issues ranging from fast fashion to the role of immigrants in the US economy, through the lens of the founders of numerous social scientific fields.
Another defining feature of college academics is that our learning has become less reliant on the instructor. As Stanford and UChicago both run on ten-week long quarters, we zoom through content at almost three times the speed of an honors-level high school course. Passing classes is no longer an individual endeavour as we have learned to seek out help whenever we need it at Zoom office hours or weekly Discord study sessions. Working through challenging problem sets has become a collective struggle and has strengthened our bonds with our peers working from all over the world. Since we are given the freedom of watching pre-recorded lectures in our own time, we have also come to realize the importance of self-discipline and accountability, especially given the distractions of studying from home. Emily keeps a weekly planner where she writes her schedule to keep herself on track, while Yan Ying creates and decorates a variety of organizational spreads in her bullet-journal. The area of school in which we have missed out the most is extracurriculars. Given the time differences, we have been unable to participate in many club meetings, guest speaker events, and informational sessions. As a result, we have disengaged from most of campus life beyond academics. It has been much harder to make new friends in college without the avenue of clubs and shared interests on top of the online communication barrier. Even at the “bonding” Zoom sessions our schools had planned for orientation week, with almost every participant’s camera off and mic muted, the environment is not exactly conducive to making new friends.
Against all odds, Yan Ying has found a home in the K-Pop fan community at UChicago by joining biweekly Zoom dance classes where she learns her favourite K-Pop choreographies with fellow student fans as early as 8 in the morning. Emily also made new friends through a course called “Frosh 101”, a small class with six other freshmen where she engaged in meaningful conversations about the transition to college and other college-related topics like the
Emily Hsu ’20
“imposter syndrome”, the fear of not belonging. The pandemic has also shed uncertainty over our summer plans as we do not know if we will be able to go to America for work or on-campus research in the summer. Because we are studying remotely, it is also especially difficult to find and seek guidance from upper-level students in similar fields. Nevertheless, Emily has moved forward with applications over the winter break for remote summer internships and research positions. As first-years with limited work experience and access to on-campus resources, we have found building our career profiles quite challenging and would love to get advice from the TAS alumni community! Despite the nontraditional freshman year, we never seize to find blessings in disguise. Staying in Taiwan also means that we have more time to spend with our families and to further explore the city. Juggling extracurriculars on top of eight classes in high school, there were rarely moments where we could enjoy a coffee at a local cafe or have a meal with friends on a weekday. Although the pace is faster and the workload is heavier in college, being home for the bulk of the time has opened up time for us to chat with our parents and banter with our siblings. For example, Emily’s brother has been back in Taiwan since his campus shut down in the spring and Yan Ying’s family has reunited once again with her older brother returning to Taiwan following his completion of his mandatory military service in Singapore. Moreover, most of our high school friends have stayed by our side this fall. As most TAS alumni are going through the same experience, we find comfort in sharing our successes and struggles, encouraging each other in these unprecedented times. During this abnormal chapter of our lives, we have learned to actively seek help when we need it. Whether among friends, classmates, or professors, we have built wide support systems and have grown stronger as a result. While the pandemic rages on in other parts of the world, Taiwan has been a safe haven with a competent government and compassionate citizenry. Although freshman year is not quite what we expected it to be, we welcomed the new challenges and still found reasons to be grateful. Emily and Yan Ying are the Class Agents for the Class of 2020. Feel free to reach out to them at 20emilyh@ alumni.tas.tw and 20yanyingm@alumni.tas.tw!
Yan Ying Mor ’20
DHIRPAL SHAH ’20 TAKES A GAP YEAR TO PURSUE A PROFESSIONAL SOCCER CAREER
Dhirpal Shah ‘20 (back row, right, in orange) is playing with the Taipei City Tatung F.C. 2020-2021. Photo courtesy of Dhirpal Shah ‘20.
By Nicole C. ’21, The Blue and Gold
Like many other students from the Class of 2020, Dhirpal Shah ’20 decided to take a gap year during these unprecedented times. He wanted to take this year off of school to pursue a professional career in soccer. The COVID-19 pandemic, however, was not the only reason as to why he decided to take this gap year; in reality, Dhirpal had always been planning to do so after graduating high school. “I had actually begun to plan on [a] gap year during the end of 2019,” he said. “And because football (soccer) did not relate too heavily to the pandemic at the time, I would have considered [a] gap year regardless [of the circumstances].” His parents were fortunately very supportive of his decision and were relieved that he would be staying in Taiwan for longer, where the pandemic has been mostly controlled. Dhirpal was also optimistic about taking a gap year. “I am confident that I will look back and acknowledge that this was one of the best decisions of my teenage years,” he said. “Football is great and all, but the chance to stay near my family and appreciate this country for what it has done for me is truly a blessing.” Since the beginning of his gap year, Dhirpal has been dedicating around three hours of his day to soccer, training with his team members four to five times a week and playing weekly games semi-regularly. He also spends an additional three hours in the weight room, and sometimes travels across the island to play soccer matches with his team.
After his season ends, he plans on taking some time off to “sit back and relax,” and even travel abroad to India or European countries, where soccer clubs have already expressed interest in signing him as a player. However, this will only be possible if vaccines are widely available and the COVID-19 situation improves. If that is not the case, he is happy staying in Taiwan and taking time to pursue his other passions such as reading and yoga. Dhirpal really enjoys the flexibility that he now has. “The best thing about taking a gap year is the freedom to pursue the things you love to a greater extent than in high school or even college,” he said. “Although there are moments of anxiety when I worry about what the next few months will look like, [having] a good plan about what you want to spend your time doing, [reminds you that] there really is nothing to worry about.” Dhirpal does not know whether he wants to go to university in the fall of 2021 or push it back even more as he is still at a “crossroads of trying to pursue professional football and attending university.” However, he is definitely excited about reuniting with people of his age if he does decide to go back to school in the fall. “[Since] I am playing with a professional men’s team here [in Taiwan], I am training with some people twice my age, and it’s fair to say that there is a bit of a generation[al] gap between us,” he said. “I miss the reassuring feeling of people around you that understand what you are feeling and going through.” For current seniors, Dhirpal recommends taking a gap year. “Even if COVID-19 magically disappears as you graduate, do not throw the thought of a gap year away so easily. Many teachers I consulted in high school encouraged me to take it because they believed that it would help in innumerable ways. If you have a plan, or even a passion, a gap year may be the best decision of your life,” he said.
By Shan Lee, Assistant Alumni and Community Outreach Officer
The Taipei American School Chinese roasted chicken leg has become an iconic symbol of the TAS experience for many since the 1980s. The cafeteria lunch lines are the longest on the days it is served, and it has been the best-selling lunch entrée since appearing on the school lunch menu. Alumni talk about it well after graduating and always request it be on the menu at on-campus alumni events. While this dish can be found all around Taiwan, alumni claim the TAS Chinese roasted chicken leg is superior to all. The TAS Chinese roasted chicken leg is a tender chicken leg that is marinated and then braised. It is traditionally served over white rice with a variety of vegetable sides, most often with Chinese broccoli. Nowadays, brown rice is also offered as a healthier alternative to white rice, though many alumni and students insist that “the right way” to have the chicken leg is over white rice. At present, the Chinese roasted chicken leg appears on the lunch menu about once a month, only because it is such a popular dish.
THE ORIGIN STORY
The Chinese roasted chicken leg was added to the TAS lunch menu almost 40 years ago by Shirley Chang, who was the Chef of Chinese Cuisine at the time. Before TAS, Chang worked for a local catering restaurant that provided lunches for the School before it had its own kitchen. When the School opened one, Chang was offered a job. She joined the food service team in 1986 and stayed on for 30 years until she retired in 2016. Chang said she was hired because her manager appreciated her work ethic, her methodic and disciplined way of doing things, and how she takes pride in everything that she creates. Chang was instrumental in ensuring the kitchen operations ran smoothly and efficiently and also fundamental in creating recipes for the school lunch menu. She is still known and respected for her meticulousness, persistence, dependability and resolve for ensuring that all work she does or manages is done well. Shawn O’Neal, TAS food service business manager who worked with Chang for many years, describes her to be “legendary, special, a one in a million.” Chang created the TAS Chinese roasted chicken leg recipe and it took her at least 30 iterations before coming up with the final version that is still used today. Creating a recipe for such a large quantity of servings that is able to satisfy the palate of students over generations and stand the test of time is no small feat. Thanks to Chang’s diligence, dedication and attention to detail, the TAS community has its famous and beloved Chinese roasted chicken leg.
A SPECIAL DISH
We received a variety of responses from alumni and students when we asked them why they love the TAS Chinese roasted chicken leg and what makes it so special. The general consensus from alumni is that the flavor of the TAS Chinese roasted chicken leg and the feelings and memories that are connected with it make it extra special. The Chinese roasted chicken leg (紅燒鷄腿) is a very popular dish in Taiwan and can be found all around the island. It contains a dozen simple ingredients that when combined create an aromatic and balanced flavor profile that is fundamental in Chinese cuisine: sweet, bitter, sour, salty, and spicy. As O’Neal explains, the likely reasons for this dish’s popularity are the tenderness of the meat and the flavor penetration throughout each piece. The process for making the TAS Chinese roasted chicken leg is straightforward but time-consuming. The recipe requires mixing the ingredients together, leaving them to marinade, and then letting all then letting everything simmer together. The chicken is marinated for at least 48 hours and this step, according to O’Neal, enables the flavors to penetrate the chicken and makes all the difference. Chang emphasizes the importance of removing the chicken from the pot before it overcooks so that the meat stays tender.
From left to right), Shawn O’Neal, TAS food services business manager, Shirley Chang, former chef of Chinese cuisine, and Sharon Wang, TAS cafeteria supervisor.
To be able to serve the Chinese roasted chicken leg for lunch, the food service team makes at least 1300 servings on that day, and they are still able to maintain the quality and flavor of this recipe that continues to satisfy the appetites of TAS students and alumni. When alumni talk about the TAS Chinese roasted chicken leg, they frequently refer to their memories and experiences from lunchtime. Some alumni describe the experience of waiting with friends in long lunch lines for the Chinese roasted chicken leg, ordering two portions (if not more) because one order was not enough to satisfy their cravings, or preferring it a certain way. Alumni Rosalind Wu ’04 recalls, “I would always ask for extra sauce over rice!” Current TAS students tell similar stories about Chinese chicken leg lunch days. Nicolas I. ’30 declares, “The chicken leg line is always super long but totally worth it!” The different versions of the stories that alumni and current students tell all express a similar sentiment, energy, and enthusiasm.
Over the years, the TAS Chinese roasted chicken leg has become an example of comfort food and for many students and alumni, a cultural touchstone — something with nostalgic and sentimental appeal that links generations in a community together. Food can be a powerful tool to help trigger memories and past emotions, particularly in a place like Taiwan where it is an important part of the culture and everyday life. Research has shown that there is an association between comfort foods and the feelings of belonging tied to our relationships with others and that “comfort foods remind us of our social ties, which means they may help us feel less lonesome when we feel isolated.” This is particularly interesting given the current pandemic situation where social distancing and other safety mandates make the need for real connections even more crucial to people’s mental and emotional well-being.
THE TAS CHICKEN ROASTED CHICKEN LEG TODAY AND HOW CAN YOU GET IT?
After leaving TAS, alumni rarely have the opportunity to get the TAS Chinese roasted chicken leg. An alumnus might be lucky enough to be visiting campus when it is being served in the cafeteria and get to enjoy it unexpectedly. The TAS Chinese roasted chicken leg has been served at on-campus alumni events such as the Alumni Homecoming and the Alumni Thanksgiving Dinner events. Due to the recent pandemic, the Alumni Office has instead organized special Chinese Roasted Chicken Leg Pick-Up events where alumni are invited to come back to campus for a lunchbox, see their peers, and take home something deliciously nostalgic. The Alumni Chinese Chicken Leg Lunch Pick-up held in September 2020 was the first event in eight months where alumni could come to campus, and it drew alumni from Classes of 1972 to 2020. In addition to pick-up participants, alumni who could not attend, current students, faculty, and former parents had enthusiastic feedback about the event. “There’s something to be said about investing in your alums this way, but look at the meal — this is promoting healthy living for the students, as well. I wish I’d had a plate like that back in high school! Go TAS!” exclaims TAS parent Wilson Ruark. Those who attended expressed excitement and appreciation along with a request that we hold another chicken leg giveaway. Those that weren’t able to attend made the same request, most emphatically. Hiromi Fong ’98 responded to the event post on Facebook, “If only you could deliver overseas! Enjoy, everyone!” The TAS food service Chinese Roasted Chicken Leg recipe is available from the digital version of this article in the News section of the TAS alumni website.
Alumni enjoyed the Chinese roasted chicken leg meal as a lunchbox at the September 2020 pick-up event.
Nick Yeh '13 became inspired by the recent demand and enthusiasm in the TAS Alumni Facebook group for a kitchen-friendly recipe. He took upon himself to experiment and come up with his modified version of the School's Chinese Roasted Chicken Leg recipe to share with the TAS community.
NICK YEH’S CHINESE ROASTED CHICKEN LEG RECIPE
Recipe and photos courtesy of Nick Yeh ’13
Nick Yeh’s Chinese Roasted Chicken Leg
INGREDIENTS
Ginger: Five ½ inch pieces Garlic: 3-4 cloves Scallions: One bunch Rock Sugar (or any sugar): One handful Sesame Oil: 2-3 Tablespoons Dark Soy Sauce: ½ cup Light Soy Sauce: ⅓ cup Soy Sauce: ½ cup Chinese Vinegar: A splash Shaoxing Wine: A splash Oyster Sauce: 2 tablespoons Shacha Sauce or Chinese BBQ (Bull Head Brand): One spoonful Chicken (I used Leg quarters)
FOR 6 PORTIONS
METHOD
Prepare the marinade by combining all the ingredients above (excluding the chicken) into a pot and bring to boil for 5 minutes. Taste for seasoning, it should be salty and sweet. I tend to have it a bit saltier because the chicken will absorb the flavor. Additionally, you may later need to add water to have enough marinade so that all the chicken is covered.
Cool the marinade to room temperature (this can take up to 45 minutes to an hour) before adding the chicken. Mix well and marinate the chicken in the refrigerator anywhere from 4 hours to 24 hours.
Set the oven to 375F. Lightly grease a heavybottomed pan (such as a cast-iron pan or dutch oven). Remove chicken from marinade and place in the pan. You can cook in multiple batches if the pan is too crowded). Cook for 30 minutes or until the internal temperature of the chicken is 165F. You can also cut one of the chicken pieces to see if the juices run clear. Rotate the pan 180 degrees at 15 minute intervals while cooking.
Strain and boil marinade (this will be used for sauce). Taste for seasoning.
After 30 minutes, remove chicken and let it rest for 5-10 minutes before serving over hot rice with sauce splashed on top.
You can reboil the marinade after cooking and store for future. Dump after 10 days, or freeze.
