The Administrative Director is Elvin Chan, a past-President of the Leadership Center for Asian Pacific Americans based in Chicago and a founder of the Chicago Asian Pacific Community Leadership Program. From 2003 to 2004, he secured funding for and directed ACON’s outreach project to identify and expand the network to new regions. Currently he is the Assistant to the Director at the University of Illinois at Chicago’s new Asian American Resource and Cultural Center.
The Chicago Coordinator is Hauwei Lien. Hauwei performs strategic business development for high frequency proprietary trading firms. In addition to volunteering with ACON, he is co-founder and organizer of Chicago Taiwanese American Professionals (TAP- Chicago). Hauwei is a graduate of Northwestern University where he studied political science, international studies, and economics. In his free time, he enjoys skiing, rock climbing, cheezy pop music, and good bourbon.
The Greater Houston Area Coordinator is Deborah Chen, an Asian American community activist concerned with social justice. Deborah is a business consultant on minority/women/disadvantaged business certifications and an event coordinator. Her true passion is in her volunteer work and she works extensively with OCA on the local and national level to establish strong local programs that empower the APIA community, enhance the image of APIAs and protect our civil rights.
The Jobs Coordinator is Casey Akemi China. Casey is a yonsei, or fourth generation Japanese American. She recently moved to Seattle, WA to pursue a Master of Public Health at the University of Washington. After graduating, she hopes to resume her work in public service to address health disparities and environmental justice issues.
The New York Coordinator is John Choe, and he currently serves in the New York City Council as Chief of Staff to Council Member John C. Liu. John has a long history of community activism, including volunteer service with the Committee Against Anti-Asian Violence (CAAAV), the Korea Exposure & Education Program (KEEP), and the Coalition of Minority Policy Professionals (CoMPP). He has been recognized for his community leadership and public service as a Coro Fellow in Public Affairs, Open Society Institute NYC Community Fellow, and a Revson Fellow at Columbia University.
The Philadelphia Coordinator is Brad Baldia. Brad currently works as the Director of Development & Outreach for United Communities Southeast Philadelphia. In addition, he works extensively with Asian community organizations on a local and national level, such as the National Association of Asian American Professionals - Philadelphia. Brad has received numerous awards for his efforts, including the “Unsung Heroes Award” by Keystone Mercy Health Plan and the “National Brotherhood/Sisterhood Award” by the National Conference for Community and Justice.
The Seattle Coordinator is Roxana Chen, a 2nd-generation Taiwanese American from Chicago. She spends most of her weekday hours as the Evaluation Manager for REACH 2010, a diabetes disparities reduction program specifically for King County’s populations of color. While she has a specific commitment to the Asian American community, she is ultimately committed toward the elimination of disparities and social injustice among all groups. When she is not busy with public health work, she can be found singing with the Seattle Symphony Chorale, volunteering at World Relief, or enjoying the Pacific NW’s great outdoors.
The Southern California Coordinator is Wataru Ebihara, PhD, a 2.5-generation Japanese American from Cleveland, OH who is now living in Los Angeles, CA. He’s a consultant and Information Systems Manager for the Little Tokyo Service Center. In addition to issues concerning the Asian Pacific Islander community, an area of interest is in computer technology and Internet projects/tools that build capacity, collaboration, information-sharing for non-profit community-based organzations. For personal details, please visit his home page.
The Technology Director is Gene Moy, staff systems engineer in Siemens Healthcare’s Angiography & X-Ray Division. He is a historian of Chinese Chicago, most recently on Chinese exclusion in the midwest, 1910-1940, and has an MA in Asian American Studies from UCLA.