Our internship is highly selective and each intern is selected based on their demonstrated academic and personal excellence, demonstrated leadership capabilities, and a commitment to serving their community.

Hyeyoon (Alyssa) Choi 최혜윤

Rising Junior at the University of California, Los Angeles

Alyssa Choi is a rising junior at University of California, Los Angeles double majoring in Political Science and Communications. At UCLA, Alyssa reports for the City and Crime beat in the Daily Bruin and has written for Enterprise, Daily Bruin’s long-term investigative section.

Alyssa is an international student from Seoul, South Korea. Her passion for journalism began in high school, where she served as a News Editor for two years. Outside of school, she published her first piece featuring the parent of a famous long-term missing child on Korea Exposé, a South Korean news and culture magazine. Alyssa was also actively involved in community service, advocacy on civil rights, and social action. For a year, she engaged in close mentorship with two North Korean defectors from Nehemiah Korea Daum School, teaching them English and helping them adjust to life in South Korea. On multiple occasions, she spoke to thousands of forced diasporas as a speaker of the Korean diaspora mission conference. After the Sewol Ferry disaster, Alyssa called for social justice against government corruption by collecting signatures for a petition to assist afflicted families.

Currently, Alyssa is the Program Coordinator at Koreatown Youth and Community Center (KYCC), spearheading a community storytelling/journalism program that promotes intergenerational tolerance and fosters journalistic interest in high school students. In the past, Alyssa has worked at Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Board of Education President Mónica García’s office as a Policy and Strategic Analysis intern, advocating for the passage of the Everyone Counts: Increasing Equity for All of Our AANHPI AMEMSA Students and Employees resolution, which disaggregated demographic data to reveal educational disparities among different ethnic groups.

In a world muddied by partisan polarization, Alyssa plans to continue her journey as a journalist to pursue truth above all else. From exposing hidden structural inequity to seeking social justice, Alyssa desires to be an advocate for disadvantaged groups. From her unique perspective as an international student interested in US constitutional law, Alyssa hopes that she can make positive, tangible changes in the communities that she serves. Alyssa is particularly excited to join the CAUSE Leadership Academy and learn more about the issues surrounding the APA community.

ASHLEY LIN

Rising Junior at the University of California, Los Angeles

Ashley Lin is a rising third year student studying Cognitive Science and Education at University of California, Los Angeles. Ashley’s first interest in culturally competent education was sparked by her work with indigenous based curriculum in Taiwan and the Philippines. After seeing students learn in an environment that accepted and celebrated their heritage, she hopes to channel that lens to bilingual education for immigrants.

At UCLA, Ashley enjoys exploring the intersectionality of psychology, education and language as they inform culture. She is a research assistant at BEAR Lab and uses new mobile EEG technology to measure student attention in the classroom setting. Her previous research projects include indigenous Taiwanese history, child self-regulation and emotional regulation, and neuronal mechanisms. Outside of the classroom, she tutors elementary/middle school students in Watts and is Seminar Director of Project Literacy, where she is responsible for organizing workshops that strengthen the tutoring community. Ashley also serves her UCLA community as a peer mental health coach under Resilience Peer Network, which is research-based modularized therapy that aims to increase student therapy accessibility.

Ashley is passionate about equitable education, educator development, and enriching communication across research, policy, and community. In the future, she hopes to pursue a career in educational policy where she can continue to serve immigrant, low-income, and/or minority groups.

This summer, Ashley is very excited to meet AAPI leaders and learn more about how cultural heritage impacts political space. Through CAUSE, she specifically hopes to learn how to empower current and future generations of the AAPI community.

LAUREN TANKEH

Rising Junior, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

Lauren Tankeh is a Junior at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. She is majoring in Political Science with a concentration in Pre-Law and a minor in Women’s and Gender Studies. Lauren is originally from the Bay Area, and is a graduate of Saint Francis High School in Mountain View.

At Cal Poly she serves as the President of the Cal Poly Undergraduate Law Association and Recruitment Chair of the coed pre-law fraternity, Phi Alpha Delta. She is also a proud member of Pilipino Cultural Exchange. Lauren conducts research at the Cal Poly Political Science Department on how historical narratives are influencing racism against Asian Americans due to COVID-19, and how COVID-19 is shaping emerging patterns of racism against Asian Americans.

During the school year, Lauren interns at California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA), a non-profit law firm that provides free legal services for low-income Californians. At CRLA, Lauren works directly with clients and conducts legal research and advocacy projects on behalf of the most exploited communities in California. Through her work at CRLA, Lauren has become passionate about housing justice and labor law.

Previously, Lauren has done research at Stanford University on the effectiveness of counterterrorism methods, worked on Ash Kalra’s campaign for State Assembly, completed the Girls Who Code Summer Immersion Program, promoted literacy initiatives while working at an independent bookstore, and managed the social media presence of several start-ups.

In the future, Lauren plans to attend law school and practice labor law. She is interested in the dynamic relationship between social movement activism and landmark legal decisions. Her ultimate goal is to use the legal system to effectively advocate for marginalized communities.

Lauren is excited to participate in the 2020 CAUSE Leadership Academy. She hopes to grow as a leader, a professional, and a civically engaged Asian American.

MATTHEW VU

Associate’s Degree Candidate at Los Angeles Trade-Technical College

Matthew Vu is a candidate for an Associate’s Degree in Community Planning and Economic Development at the Los Angeles Trade-Technical College. His current areas of interest are capacity building and leadership development, alternative land ownership models, and the democratization of the land use process. While some may get lost in these abstract ideas, Matthew considers himself a scholar-activist and thrives in the theoretical.

Being a scholar-activist means that it is Matthew’s job to link theory to praxis so that our thoughts can change our world. To do this, Matthew “translates” these complicated ideas into easily-understood terms for others so that we may act intentionally together. In the past eight years, Matthew has helped translate the significance and power of civic engagement to disenfranchised Black and brown communities through voter registration, outreach, and mobilization. In his previous capacity as Campaign Coordinator at Power California, Matthew built and led outreach teams in support of Yes on 10 (2018) to repeal Costa-Hawkins and Yes on Measure EE (2019) a parcel tax to help meet the UTLA strike demands. Through these campaigns, Matthew learned how critical it is in every organization and movement to build leadership in others. That is why he is so excited to be part of the CAUSE Leadership Academy 2020.

Matthew Vu is the first born, queer son of Vietnamese refugees. In his free time, Matthew likes to cook, discover new music, and explore the city. He is a new plant papa and recently picked up bicycling on the streets of Los Angeles which may or may not be an extreme sport. Originally hailing from the San Francisco Bay Area, he now has the privilege to call South Central home where he has lived for the past 5 years

MELODY SATELE

Rising Junior at the University of California, Los Angeles

Melody Satele is an incoming Junior at the University of California Los Angeles, double majoring in Geography/Environmental Studies and Sociology. She is a first-generation college student born of Samoan descent, and was raised in San Bernardino, California. Melody attended Cajon High School in her hometown, where her achievements earned her the title of Valedictorian and International Baccalaureate Diploma Recipient.

Melody’s passions meet at an intersection between her identity as an indigenous student, and her awareness of Asian-Pacific American issues. While at UCLA, Melody worked for two years with the Pacific Islander Education and Retention (PIER) outreach project as the Academic Success Coordinator, and the Peer Advisor. Melody made herself a resource for Pacific Islander students at local high schools twice a week, providing tutoring, facilitating workshops, and hosting events at UCLA and in the greater LA area. She also coordinated I.M.U.A., a youth conference intended to address the lack of educational opportunities and culturally relevant resources available for Pacific Islander students.

In the future, Melody plans on pursuing a career in Environmental Law so she can ensure that diverse voices are included in environmental policy at the federal level. Melody has high hopes for policies that are inclusive of indigenous knowledge, and recognize the impact of climate change on island nations. Melody is inspired by and involved in environmental activism through movements such as Protect Mauna Kea. By bringing visibility to Pacific Islander issues, Melody will be advocating for stronger structural support and relevant resources to be funded to underserved communities.

Melody is incredibly excited to be a member of the 2020 CAUSE Cohort. She hopes to expand her knowledge of Asian-Pacific American issues, and how we can use policy to institute change. She looks forward to learning from community members, and being able to share her own ideas with everyone in such a unique space.  

SANDI KHINE

Rising Freshman at Stanford University

Sandi Khine (she/her) is a graduating senior from Arcadia High School and will be matriculating to Stanford University in Fall 2021, after a gap year. During this gap year, she plans to study Korean in Seoul through the State Department’s program National Security Language Initiative for Youth. At Stanford, she looks to double major in Urban Studies and Asian American Studies, as well as exploring East Asian Studies, Anthropology, History, and Sociology.

At Arcadia High, Sandi was involved in media and civic organizations. She served as Editor-in-Chief of The Apache Pow Wow, Student Managing Editor of the Arcadia Unified Digital Communications Internship Program, National Extemporaneous Captain of Speech and Debate Team, and Publicity Commissioner of student government. After interning for the Office of Congresswoman Judy Chu, Sandi was inspired to increase civic engagement among her peers, and organized and executed a voter pre-registration drive for her school community in November 2018 and 2019.

In addition to her extracurricular involvements, Sandi has participated in traditional Burmese dance for many years. She appreciates that traditional Burmese dance has given her a chance to embrace her cultural roots, connect with a thriving Burmese-American community, and find a creative outlet through dance.

In the future, Sandi hopes to continue exploring the intersections between media, information, technology, and public policy and seeks to bring political awareness to historically underrepresented Southeast Asian communities, especially Burmese American communities. Sandi is excited to participate in the CAUSE Leadership Academy this summer and looks forward to meeting new people and developing critical skills as she begins to navigate college.