OCA Accepting Scholarship Applications for Fall 2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

11 Jan 2011

CONTACT

Mary Kong | Program Assistant

202 223 5500 | mkong@ocanational.org

Washington DC – OCA, a national organization dedicated to advancing the social, economic, and political well-being of Asian Pacific Americans, is pleased to announce that it is accepting 2011 applications for the OCA-AXA Achievement, OCA-UPS Gold Mountain, and OCA-Verizon College scholarships. Each scholarship is valued at $2,000 and is nonrenewable. Applications for all scholarships are due by April 4, 2011.

“For over 10 years, OCA has been providing scholarship assistance to those with financial need, who otherwise may not have the opportunity to attend college,” said Ken Lee, OCA National President. “OCA is proud to be able to recognize students who have demonstrated a strong commitment to academic achievement and civil engagement.”

In order to be eligible for the OCA-UPS Gold Mountain and OCA-AXA scholarships, students must be a current Asian Pacific American (APA) high school senior entering their first year of college, demonstrate financial need, be a permanent resident or U.S. citizen, and have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 or above (on a 4.0 scale). OCA-UPS Gold Mountain scholarship is intended for APA students who are the first person in their family to attend an institution of higher education. The OCA-AXA scholarship is geared for students who have dedicated time to community service and demonstrated leadership ability.

Current undergraduates who are studying technical majors and are entering their third or fourth year in college may apply for the OCA-Verizon College scholarship. Applications for the OCA-Verizon College Scholarships must be submitted online.

For more information, or to download the application, please visit www.ocanational.org.

Seeking Bay Area Students for OCA Summer Internship

We’ve been notified of an internship position in Speaker Pelosi’s Office. The deadline is coming up quick, but if you know of any students that would be great Congressional interns but need an extension, let Iimay Ho of the National Office know. Her contact information is below.

OCA Summer Internship
Placement in Speaker Pelosi’s Office
WHAT: The OCA Summer Internship program is one of the premier internship programs for college students interested in Asian Pacific American (APA) issues. Interns are placed in paid full-time positions in federal agencies, Congressional offices, and partner nonprofits in Washington, DC. Interns also learn about APA issues through a weekly brownbag luncheon series, and get the opportunity to help organize one of the largest APA conferences in the country at our annual National Convention.

CONGRESSIONAL PLACEMENT: We are currently seeking undergraduate students from (or attending school in) San Francisco for an internship placement in Speaker Pelosi’s DC office. Congressional interns have the unique opportunity to get an insider's perspective on policymaking. Congressional interns generally have many networking opportunities on Capitol Hill, attend staff and member meetings, write memos, conduct research, answer constituent mail, and perform other administrative tasks. This internship will be a great way for those interested in the legislative process to get their foot in the door and build lasting relationships with Congressional staffers. Applicants seeking this Congressional placement must be selected as an OCA intern and then interview with Pelosi’s office before confirming their placement.

HOW: The OCA summer internship application can be found online at http://www.ocanational.org/ under "Internship" under "Programs." Applicants must submit a completed application form, a resume, a 1-page essay, an unofficial transcript, and 2 letters of recommendation by March 1, 2010. Contact Iimay Ho at iho@ocanational.org with questions.
Best,

IIMAY HO Program Manager
OCA National Center
1322 18th Street NW
Washington, DC 20036
202-223-5500 tel
202-296-0540 fax
iho@ocanational.org
www.ocanational.org

OCA Embracing the Hopes and Aspirations of Asian Pacific Americans

AEA Annual Scholarship Fundraiser Dinner

OCA-East Bay sponsored a table for the 2009 Annual Scholarship Fundraiser and Awards Dinner held by the Asian Employees Association at the Port of Oakland on May 1, 2009.

The night started off with a lion dance performance by the Asian Youth Services Committee a non-profit organization coached by Sifu Robert Lee. ayscliondance.com. Guest speakers included Victor Uno President of the Port Commissioners and Kim-Dung Nguyen a recipient of the AEA scholarship in 1999 and currently a teacher at Oakland Unified School District. Joe Wong, Deputy Executive Director of the Port of Oakland was presented with an award for his help in founding and guiding the Port AEA.

The main highlight of the night was the presentation of 17 exceptional high school students. The AEA awarded them with scholarships ranging from $1500-$3000. Stanley Kiang the VP of OCA-East Bay presented a $4000 award to our first Frank Kiang Scholarship recipient Ms. Fanny Hoang.

Mr. Kiang is a co-founder of OCA-East Bay and founder of Metropolitan Bank, a community bank based in Oakland. He passed away last year, following years of community service including leadership positions on the Board of Commissioners at the Port of Oakland and the Board of Alta Bates Summit Medical Center. A scholarship in his name will be awarded on an annual basis to young people who demonstrate strong leadership potential.

2009 OCA National Scholarship

Applications for the OCA National Scholarship need to be postmarked by or submitted online by April 20, 2009.

Information and application forms can be found here.
http://www.ocanational.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=59&Itemid=

Scholarship Applications:

2009 OCA National Scholarship (PDF)

2009 OCA National Scholarship (Word)

Online

Frank Kiang Scholarship Recipient

OCA in partner with the Port of Oakland Asian Employees Association is proud to award Kholoud Abdullah with the first Frank Kiang Scholarship award. In the photo above, Frank Kiang's son Stanley Kiang presents Kholoud with the award.

Kholoud arrived in the US from Yemen two and a half years ago without any English language skills whatsoever. In the short time since, she has not only mastered English, but also has excelled in her studies, amassing a GPA that is close to 4.0! In fact, many of her classmates now look to her for assistance and she regularly tutors in various subjects including math, physics, chemistry, and biotechnology. She is known by her teachers as having "a powerful drive to succeed, a love for learning, great curiosity, a strong intellect as well as a fantastic work habits".

In addition to tutoring, Kholoud has been involved with the Journalism Club as an editor and contributor, the Environment Friend's Club as president, and in an effort at her school in Yemen to create a fund to pay tuition for girls in need, a common and widespread issue in Yemen. In the US, she has taken internships at Children's Hospital and Biotech Partners, and worked part-time at Alameda County Medical Center. She writes, "I want to go to college, but it will be tough for me to decide my major among all the subjects that I like: math, physics, chemistry, biotech, or political science. However, as a student of minority group I want to help other minority students go to college, because education can definitely be a tool to strengthen my community. I want to be a Cardiologist and help people who cannot afford medical insurance by opening my own clinic.

Congratulations Kholoud!

South Bay Chinese Service Club Scholarship

The South Bay Chinese Service Club is awarding scholarships to graduating high school seniors residing in Fremont, Newark and Union City. The scholarship application deadline is February 29, 2008.

Additional information and applications available at:
http://www.sbcclub.org/SBCC%20Scholarship%20AppInfo.html

AEA Scholarship Program

The Asian Employees Association (AEA) at the Port of Oakland is a non-profit organization founded by Port employees in 1991.

In 1993 the AEA established a scholarship program to encourage deserving high school students from the community to pursue post-secondary education. Since then the AEA has awarded 126 scholarships totaling $160,500.

In 2008, AEA expects to award scholarships from $1,000 to $4,000 up to a total of $30,000.

1) If submitting by U.S. Postal Service mail, applications must be postmarked no later than January 25, 2008.

2) If submitting in person, applications must be delivered to the Port of Oakland offices no later than 4:30 p.m. on Monday, January 28, 2008.

More information and applications available at
http://www.portaea.org/scholarship/scholarship.html

OCA 2008 Scholarship Applications Now Available

Washington, DC—OCA is pleased to announce that applications for the 2008 OCA Scholarship Program are now available online. Up to sixty $2000 scholarships will be awarded to incoming Asian Pacific Islander American (APIA) college freshmen for the 2008-2009 academic school year. OCA recognizes that scholarships and financial aid play an essential role in helping students achieve a college education.

"OCA is dedicated to education in the APIA community," said OCA National President Ginny Gong. "We recognize the need to provide opportunities for students who do not have access to the financial resources necessary to pursue higher education."

Although the average level of education for the APIA community is higher than the national average, the statistics are misleading. While there are many members of the APIA community who have advanced degrees, there are also countless others who are unable to attend college due to financial reasons. Through its many scholarships, OCA strives to achieve its goals of promoting civic participation, education, and leadership.

“For the 2008 OCA Scholarship Program, OCA offers a variety of scholarships to economically disadvantaged APIAs. OCA offers scholarships for students who can demonstrate financial need, high achievement, and for those who are the first member in their family to attend college in the United States,” said OCA Executive Director Michael Lin.

For more information on OCA’s scholarship programs and an application, please follow the link to the OCA National website. The deadline for applying to the 2008 OCA Scholarship Programs is April 18, 2008.

http://www.ocanational.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=185&Itemid=

Applications:
2008 OCA Scholarship Application (Word Version)

2008 OCA Scholarship Application (PDF Version)

Contact:
Douglas Lee | Senior Program Manager
202 223 5500 | dlee@ocanational.org