The World in LA; Los Angeles in the World

This past Monday, I had the amazing opportunity to present a grant proposal on behalf of Reading Partners, a national literacy nonprofit with which I have worked throughout high school, to a panel of judges connected to the Poly and Pasadena community. My grant proposal, which I described in a recent blog post, sought to expand the selection of books in Los Angeles Reading Partners libraries that center on global narratives or stories with a diverse cast of characters. Mine was one of two fully funded projects for groups from Poly; alongside those two projects were also two groups from Partnership for Success! that received a grant that fulfilled their request completely. One other Poly group was partially funded, and the remaining groups’ organizations received donations. I received $1900, the lion’s share of which will go to purchasing collections of books from Lee and Low Publishing, a company with values congruous to the ones associated with my grant proposal: pushing for re...

This past Wednesday, the Asian Affinity Alliance brought to Poly Joe Wong, an internationally acclaimed stand-up comedian and talk-show host. He delivered a half-hour set in his signature deadpan in the Upper School’s Garland auditorium before fielding questions from the audience. Wong, a Poly parent, rose to national fame after a series of television appearances, including The Late Show with David Letterman in 2009 and then again in 2010. He now hosts the Chinese television show Is it True? and spends much of his time in Beijing. Wong appealed to a wide audience with the jokes he selected. The crowd of Poly families, students, and community members received him enthusiastically. He shared many humorous anecdotes about his experience as an immigrant, a Chinese-American, and a chemistry PhD trying to get break onto the stand-up scene. His story of immigration was particularly impactful given the treatment of immigration by the current presidential administration, which he addressed...

For my capstone project, I plan on completing a grant proposal in partnership with Reading Partners, a national literacy nonprofit with which I have worked for the last four years in various capacities. Reading Partners mainly operates in Title 1 schools and services students who have fallen behind grade-level expectations. I began working with Reading Partners because I am deeply invested in equity in education and also benefit greatly from my engagement and relationship with the school where I volunteer. Though this organization does not directly serve or operate in foreign countries, I believe the work it does in the United States, and particularly in Los Angeles, has global significance in two ways. Last year, I became a member of the regional Tutor Advisory Council, specifically contributing to the Library Improvements committee. In meetings, it has been noted that there is a lack of reading options that reflect the diverse student body Reading Partners Los Angeles serves....

This past Sunday, Kiran Ahluwalia and her band completed the last leg of their West Coast tour in Pasadena at Caltech’s Beckman Auditorium. Several Poly students, including some members of the Global Scholars cohort, and faculty joined her for two hours of sensational performances. In her work, Ahluwalia blends the vocal traditions of India and Pakistan with aspects of jazz, rock, and Mali and Western blues to create a fusion that transcends any of her individual influences. Onstage, Ahluwalia moves—and even seems to become one—with the music she and her bandmates create. Her movements appear loose and spontaneous, allowing the viewer to feel both sonically and visually immersed in her work. She also masterfully utilizes numerous implements and instruments during the performances of her songs. During this concert alone, she used a megaphone, a tambourine, and bracelets; coupled with her soaring vocals, Ahluwalia’s work is sheerly beautiful. Particularly in light of the recent tens...

Jessica Jackley, co-founder of Kiva and professor at the Marshall School of Business at USC, recently visited Poly’s upper school to discuss her path to social entrepreneurship. A parent of two Poly lower-schoolers, Jackley began the event by introducing herself, her two children, and her husband. She stressed something with which many Poly students and parents can likely relate: family, despite all of our various obligations and activities, comes first. Throughout the event, Jackley also emphasized the value and importance of each of our individual stories, which I greatly appreciated. To open her TedTalk from 2010, Jackley said, “The stories we tell about each other matter very much; the stories we tell ourselves about our own lives matter; and most of all, I think the way we participate in each other’s stories is of deep importance.” This investment in the experiences of others seems to have guided Jackley’s pioneering work in the microlending space. Jackley also detailed the e...

Last week, the Poly community had the distinct privilege of hosting Alephonsion Deng, one of the Lost Boys of Sudan and the author of two books, They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky (2005) and Disturbed in Their Nests (2018), and Joseph Jok, his International Rescue Committee (IRC) case manager. Deng and Jok joined the Upper School for an assembly to begin the day and later had lunch with the Global Scholars cohort and other Poly students who had read and were interested in his most recent book. In the evening, the two also presented at a Global Scholars event. During the morning assembly, Jok opened with a brief history of the region of Sudan and the more recent geopolitical trends that led to the fleeing of thousands of refugees, of which Deng was a part. Like other Lost Boys, as they were known, Deng made his way out of his village and to a refugee camp in neighboring Kenya entirely on foot. Jok also touched on the role of religion and resource scarcity that led to the cultural...

For his fifteenth birthday, my younger brother received tickets to an NBA game between our two home teams, the Lakers and the Clippers. With superstar duos and solid supporting players, both teams are championship contenders this year. Lebron James and Anthony Davis helm the Lakers, and Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, who is currently injured, lead the Clippers. A couple weeks ago, my little brother, our dad and I made the trek across Los Angeles to the Staples Center, where the highly anticipated matchup would take place. After a typical half-hour looking for parking, we began the walk over to the stadium. Outside of the enormous arena, we saw the usual array of characters: young men scalping tickets, locals hawking street food, and entrepreneurial vendors selling merchandise. One group, however, stood out from the rest. Their wares, handed out to any willing passerby, were free: bright yellow shirts with the words “Fight for freedom, stand with Hong Kong” emblazoned across the chest....