My goal is to motivate others to pursue their own dreams rather than things placed upon them by society. I want to be the living proof and motivation that other girls, LGBTQ+, and POC need to follow their heart and achieve things in underrepresented fields.

My parents both immigrated to the United States from Vietnam, living in a two story house alongside my grandparents, aunt, uncles, and their spouses and children. With little space or resources to spare, they would rely on one another to help provide for one another and take care of one another. My aunt and uncle came to America young enough to receive a high school education, experiencing racism and mockery from peers who had never been around Asian people before. Even after the two of them were able to secure safe, well-paying jobs to support their own families, they would all continue to nurture that familial bond of protecting and providing for one another. Growing up, my parents wanted the best for me. They named me 'Jennifer', a popular name in the early late '90s and early 2000s so I could fit in with the other kids at school without being made fun of. Because they had very little knowledge of English, they sent me to preschool in hopes that the teachers there would teach me how to communicate. They taught me math every night so I would never feel like I was falling behind in school. All those little things they did to prepare me helped to solidify who I was and who I was going to become. I grew up loving to learn, whether it be through reading books or through other people's experiences. I fell in love with the internet, having so much information in mere seconds with the click of a button. My grandmother used to say that wisdom and knowledge is the way you make some respect you, and it was something I would always take to heart. I remember tales of my aunt begging to stay home after being bullied for her accent at school. She spent every waking hour studying and studying, becoming a better person and becoming a better student. She ended up becoming first in her class, and there was never a single peep about her accent ever again. These personal stories that I heard from my family really inspired me: as someone who was given the chance to live in the United States, I wanted to follow in the footsteps of my family members who put in their blood, sweat, and tears to create opportunities that were not originally there. At the same time, I am fully aware of the obstacles that many minorities such as myself face when it comes to receiving an education or pursuing a career. The American Progress reported that despite high achievements in education, Asian American women make disproportionately less money than their male counterparts (about 73%). According to a study done by WIT in 2021, only 26% of the computing workforce were women with only 7% of those women being Asian. And don't get me started on the statistics for first generation female LGBTQ+ Asian American individuals such as myself. For me, what is importance is access to education. I know there are many young girls, teens, young adults, and adults who all have dreams to pursue computer science and technology related fields. Not all of them will, becoming discouraged due to cultural reasons or not having the same access to information as those who have lived generations in the United States. I hope with my own education, I will be able to give back to the communities who have helped me. I hope I will make my parents proud as the first of our family to receive a college education and the first to receive a degree. I hope I am able to go even further to be the first in our family to receive a doctorate. I am incredibly grateful for the values that my parents were able to teach me at a young age, and I hope I will carry those beliefs as I continue to grow as a person.

I don't mean to brag, but my dad is seriously the greatest. My dad and his family came over to the United States from Vietnam at a very young age. He spoke little English, but he had a heart of gold and pure determination running through his veins. He used to tell me stories of how he and his siblings used to be treated by others at that time. He told me about his younger sister begging to stay at home because other students were bullying her for her accented English. People used to try and scam them for their money's worth because they thought they could get away with it. My grandmother used to tell him that 'proving your wisdom and knowledge' was the key to get others to respect you, and this is what he has always taught me time and time again since I was a little girl. My dad was never able to get an education, immigrating over to America before he could finish high school. As a result, he got a job as a construction worker at a local pipe factory just years before I was born (and has been working diligently at that same location ever since). He has always emphasized the importance of education to me. After working from 5 am to 7 pm every day, he would come home to elementary school aged me and teach me basic math and algebra, which helped me gain an understanding more quickly in school. He always told me that it did not matter what I pursued, what interests I had or wanted to follow- as long as I received the education for it. My dad was always supporting my decision to go into Computer Science and the tech industry, something that has always been viewed as a male dominated field. Every step of the way, he has always been my number one supporter: whether it be purchasing my first ever laptop, building my first PC, or helping me research colleges with good computer science programs. I have never met a more hard working person than my dad. He helped instill values that I hold very dear to my heart. He taught me the importance of hard work through his dedication at the one construction factory for more than twenty years. He taught me the importance of education through learning concepts before they are being taught in school to gain an advantage. He taught me the importance of wisdom through his many years lived as an immigrant in America. I am incredibly proud to be his daughter and have a father figure like him.

I have always felt like I've been playing catch-up for the longest time. I got my first laptop at a very young age, and I fell in love instantaneously. The fact that anything I wanted to learn could be discovered and accessed at the tip of my fingers in mere seconds drew me in. It wasn't until I took my first computer science class going into high school did I finally look around and realized I was surrounded by people who weren't like me. Most of them were guys I knew, but none of them were female and Asian American. It never affected my performance- I would give it my 101% effort and dedication regardless of who my peers were. However, it was always a lingering thought in the back of my head of how little representation there really was. Many of my friends were just like me: girls interesting in gaming, in graphic design, computers, and everything in between. But from a young age, one by one, little things discouraged them from pursuing what was considered a male dominated field of study. It was at that point I confirmed my life long goal of diving into the field of computer science. I love every little aspect of the field: from the designing of websites, to the coding of applications, to the data stored in databases. I know I can't be the only one out there who feels the same way. I think for me, with my degree after computer science, I would like to help empower others to do the same. I would like to become the motivation and the proof for those younger than myself: someone they can look up to and think "she's just like me, I can do it too." I have always felt very passionately about representation and how diversity of opinion and people can uplift everyone. I hope to be able to give back to those who have encouraged me to pursue the field, especially my parents and my community. I hope I will be able to use my degree not only to help people on the internet but to help many people in the real world as well. There are many things I want to be able to do. I have many passions that I want to be able to work on. I hope that I can take all those passions and find a job where I have the liberty to be technical, to be creative, and to be kind to one another. I will not lie- college is expensive. I believe this scholarship will help me in the journey of becoming the person little me would have looked up to all those years ago.