Alison ChanUniversity of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
American Chair Carpentersville, Illinois Alison is a currently a senior in Psychology with a minor in Asian Americans Studies. She will be graduating Spring 2017. As a second generation Taiwanese American, Alison has always struggled with her identity. She was always shielded and not really educated about the country where her immigrant parents came from. Born in Chicago, and raised in the Northwest suburbs, her American identity was always familiar while her Taiwanese identity remained a mystery. It was not until her junior year at University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, where she found her passion for cross cultural exchange and diversity and inclusion as well as learning more about her Taiwanese identity. She took an interest in Asian American Studies and in particular, joined organizations like ITASA (Intercollegiate Taiwanese American Student Association), GLOBE (Global Leaders: Orange and Blue Engagement) and registered student organizations like TASC (Taiwanese American Students Club) and APAC (American Pacific American Coalition). In addition to her involvement in the AAPI community, she is an Social Justice Educator Paraprofessional, student activist, and I-Connect facilitator for new students at UIUC. As a 2016 TASC American Delegate, Alison saw an opportunity to learn more about her roots, Taiwan. TASC provided Alison with the knowledge she would not get anywhere else about US-Taiwan relations and getting to explore the beautiful island with students her own age. Alison left TASC with lifelong friendships, knowledge about US-Taiwan relations, and a passion for cross cultural exchange and international relations. She is returning as the 2017 American Executive Chair. After TASC in 2017, she plans to join the Peace Corps and then head to law school with an interest in International Law. In her free time, she enjoys watching Netflix, FaceTiming with her family, trying new foods, and cooking.
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