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OUR ELEVATOR PITCH

ASIAN STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT is a not-for-profit organization specializing in soft skills coaching for students and professionals, as well as a diversity-driven job board for early career professionals. We believe that skills such as ​professional networking, promoting yourself, and job interviewing can be the deciding factor between you and another job candidate.

We have years of coaching experience with students of all cultural backgrounds and skill levels who have gone on to work their dream jobs.

​And best of all, our workshops are fun and engaging. Invite us to campus and upload your resume to our diversity-driven job board!

OUR TEAM

Leadership Team

​Shane Carlin (He/Him/His)
CEO & Founder, Coach
​LinkedIn

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​Shane Carlin's professional career has been in fundraising and Student Affairs where he was the Director of Development for Student Life and Scholarships at Northwestern University, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Advancement at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Carlin has also worked as the Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations at the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA), as well as in Residence Life and Housing at Miami, Northwestern, and Capital Universities.

He is a Korean American adoptee where he grew-up in northern Kentucky. Carlin earned his Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Communications from the University of Kentucky and his Master of Science in College Student Personnel from Miami University. 

​Carlin not only has over 20 years of experience in higher education administration, but also has mentored students in international settings. Besides his expertise in higher education, Carlin is an experienced public speaker. He has been invited to speak at universities from coast to coast. In addition, he was a speaker for TEDx Lakeshore East in 2011. Internationally, Carlin presented the “Western Way of Networking” to students at Hong Kong University Science & Technology (HKUST) and managers at General Electric (GE) in Shanghai at the China Technology Center. ​

Charlene Chen (She/Her/Hers)
Director of Finance, Treasurer
LinkedIn

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Charlene Chen is currently a Technical Consultant at Strata Decision Technology. She grew up in California and continued her education at the University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign with a double major in Information Systems and Information Technology and Marketing. As an undergraduate student she held various board member positions including being the Cultural Awareness Chair with the Asian American Association. When she is not at work, she enjoys playing soccer, doing pilates and exploring new places. ​
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Venus Liang (She/Her/Hers)
Director of Human Resources
​​LinkedIn

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Venus is currently a registered nurse at Northwestern Prentice Women’s Hospital. At work she cares for expectant mothers and newborns in the Labor and Delivery unit. Her education includes a degree from the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign in Molecular and Cellular Biology and a Masters in Nursing from Depaul University. As an undergraduate student she held multiple board member positions with the Asian American Association such as Fashion Show Head Coordinator and Internal Vice President. When she is not at work, she is training for her next Spartan Race, crafting chic wedding decor for friends, and exploring her hometown of Chicago with her husband.​

David Wang (He/Him/His)
Director of Technology & Analytics
LinkedIn

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Tianlu David Wang is a graduate computer science student at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He is driven by a philosophy of continuous improvement, always finding opportunities to improve his skills and develop efficient solutions. Previously, David has volunteered as Lead Translator for a medical mission to Chinese maternity hospitals. When not teaching himself new topics in computer science, David enjoys hiking, drawing, and woodworking.

 
Vanessa Mancao​ (She/Her/Hers)
Director of Marketing
LinkedIn​

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Vanessa Mancao is a multifaceted individual with a demonstrated history of working in broadcast television, event planning, marketing, and project management. A Kansas native who attended the University of Missouri’s School of Journalism, she graduated with a Bachelor of Journalism degree, with a minor in architectural studies. At Mizzou, Vanessa was the president of the MU-Filipino American Student Association, secretary of the Midwest Association of Filipino Americans, and historian for the Asian American Association. Upon graduating, Vanessa started her career at KTUL-TV Tulsa’s Channel 8 as the morning show producer. She pivoted her career to marketing and event planning, serving as project coordinator at Northeastern State University and event, festival coordinator at BOK Center arena, and account executive at Freestyle Creative. Vanessa is currently an integrated project manager a Saxum, a marketing and advertising agency. Additionally, Vanessa is the Public Service chair for Ad 2 OKC board, a young-professionals advertising group in Oklahoma City. She leads the group’s public service committee in partnership with the Down Syndrome Association of Central Oklahoma to market and plan their World Down Syndrome Day event. In her free time, Vanessa loves to hang out with her family and friends, attend concerts, binge watch shows and bake!

 
Amanda Sabal (She/Her/Hers)
Director of Operations
LinkedIn​

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Amanda Sabal has been in the IT industry for over 10 years and has worked for top companies such as IBM, Allstate, and Walgreens. Alongside building her career, Amanda believes in giving back through volunteering with various organizations.  Her early roots of volunteering are with ALPFA and ProHispanica (formerly NSHMBA), both a member based organization with a mission to build professional  leaders in the community. This has laid the foundation of where Amanda’s leadership skills where built and strengthen through various projects.

A recent project Amanda has curated and facilitated which received high recognition  titled “Uncovering the surge of racism and crime in the Asian community”. This discussion has taken place during the Covid-19 pandemic highlighting the impacts of the blame of the covid-19 virus on the Asian community from government to ground zero. 

Staff

Kate Kim (She/Her/Hers)
Graphic Design Intern
​LinkedIn

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Kate Kim is currently a junior at Lubbock High School in the International Baccalaureate program. She was born in Korea, raised in Texas, and currently lives in Nashville. Aside from school, she loves to participate in making her community a better and more equal place and believes that small actions lead to big changes. Her hobbies include drawing, photography, talking to friends, and cooking.

Cheryl Sun (She/Her/Hers)
ASA Blogger
LinkedIn​

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Cheryl Sun is currently a Program Manager at Apple, within the Retail Online team. She has a background in finance, and completed her undergraduate education at UC Santa Barbara studying economics and statistical science. While at UCSB, Cheryl wrote for the independent news publication The Daily Nexus where she held a series of positions including Managing Editor and University News Editor. Cheryl grew up in California where she currently resides, and considers Taipei, Taiwan her second home. In her free time, she enjoys travel, concerts, hiking, and fitness classes.

Katie Zeng (She/Her/Hers)
Data Analyst/Human Resources Intern
LinkedIn​

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Katie Zeng is a senior studying at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She will be graduating in May 2021 with a concentration in Statistics and double minors of Business and Microeconomics. She has also been the Treasurer for the National Society of Collegiate Scholars since her sophomore year. She appreciates having a busy lifestyle, which is one of the reasons why she starts her day at 7AM. However, when she does find herself with free time on her hand, she is most likely heading over to the gym, taking pictures of her cat or testing out new recipes in the kitchen.

Linah Uchiyama (She/Her/Hers)
Content Marketing Intern
LinkedIn​

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Linah Uchiyama is currently a freshman at Boston University pursuing a dual degree in Advertising and Graphic Design under the College of Communication and College of Fine Arts. She is originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, but has loved being in Boston for the past year. At Boston University, she works with the Asian Student Union as a graphic design chair and works with AdClub as an art director. She enjoys working with others on a team and is motivated to learn from others in her community. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, photography, and eating with friends!

Nha Phung (She/Her/Hers)
Graphic Design Intern
LinkedIn​

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Nha Phung is an international student from Vietnam, studying abroad in the U.S. since 2015. She is currently a senior who is pursuing Engineering Technology: Concentrate in Manufacturing System at San Jose State University. Nha has also been a member of the Society of Asian Scientists and Engineers (SASE) since she was a sophomore. And currently, she is the Industrial Chair of the San Jose State University chapter. During her free time, she enjoys watching YouTube, Netflix, and subtitling.

Minh Le (He/Him/His)
Technology Intern
LinkedIn​

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Minh Le is currently a senior at San Jose State University, majoring in Engineering Technology concentrate in Computer Networking System Management with a double minor in Business management and Chinese. When he has free time, he likes to read manga, play games with friends and meditate. 

Taiha Begum (She/Her/Hers)
Special Projects Intern
LinkedIn​

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Taiha is a senior in Industrial Engineering at the University of Buffalo, concentrating in Human Factors Engineering and Ergonomics. Taiha currently lives in Buffalo, NY with her family and friends. She is a part of various on-campus clubs such as SASE, SWE, WISE, MSA, and MWC.  Outside of academics, Taiha is a full-time tutor for k-12 students and enjoys devoting her time to help them learn better. In her free time, Taiha likes to dine out for different cuisines with friends, go hiking at Letchworth State Park, and take pictures for her Instagram, in order to illustrate her love for photography and fashion. Some of Taiha's hobbies include collecting watches, and reading and writing sci-fi/fantasy novels.

Djorgi Sunoto (He/Him/His)
Operations/Special Projects Intern
LinkedIn​

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Djorgi Sunoto is a recent graduate from The Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations with a minor in Social Psychology. As someone who grew up in Indonesia, Canada, and the United States; he is passionate in interacting with people with different cultural backgrounds and nationalities. In his spare time, he enjoys building custom mechanical keyboards.

Catherine Nguyen (She/Her/Hers)
Web Design Intern​

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Catherine Nguyen is a senior at San Jose State University majoring in Computer Science and has interests in UX/UI and Web Development. At SJSU, Catherine has been deeply involved with a cultural organization, Vietnamese Student Association, since her first semester in college. When she is not busy with homework or studying, Catherine likes to dance to choreographies, listen to true crime podcasts, going to the gym, or playing badminton.

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We are always looking for talents to join our growing team! Take a look at our open positions.