This week, President Obama designated Assistant to the President and Cabinet Secretary Christopher Lu to join Education Secretary Arne Duncan as co-chair of the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Lu replaces former Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, who had co-chaired the White House Initiative before becoming the U.S. Ambassador to China.
President Obama also announced his intent to appoint Olympic skating champion Apolo Ohno, Professor May Chen and Dr. Tung Thanh Nguyen to the President's Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
Here's some more information on the appointees:
Christopher Lu is Assistant to the President and Cabinet Secretary at the White House. Mr. Lu is one of President Obama's longest-serving advisors, starting in 2005 as Legislative Director for then-Senator Obama, before becoming Acting Chief of Staff in the U.S. Senate office. After Election Day 2008, Lu was named the Executive Director of the Obama-Biden Transition Project. His 15 years of government experience includes eight years as Deputy Chief Counsel of the House Government Reform Committee (Democratic Staff). Mr. Lu is a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School.Here's the White House press release on the appointments: President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts. For more information on the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, go to the WHIAAPI website here.
May Y. Chen is an adjunct professor at the City University of New York, where she has taught labor studies courses and coordinated labor exchanges with Asia for the Joseph S. Murphy Institute for Worker Education and Labor Studies since 2009. Previously, Ms. Chen was the International Union Vice President for Workers United, Service Employees International Union in 2009. She served as the International Union Vice President of UNITE HERE from 1999 to 2009, and Local 23-25 Manager and New York Metropolitan Area Joint Board Secretary-Treasurer from 2004 to 2009. In her time at UNITE HERE, Ms. Chen held a number of positions, including Assistant/Associate Manager from 1997 to 2004 and Assistant Director and Director of the Education Department from 1989 to 1997. From 1970 to 1979, she was an adjunct professor and teacher at several schools and universities in California, including the University of California at Los Angeles and California State University at Long Beach. Ms. Chen is a Founding Member of the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance and continues to serve on its New York Chapter Board. She also serves as Board President of the New York State Immigrant Action Fund. She holds an A.B. in East Asian Studies from Harvard/Radcliffe College and an M.A. in Education from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Dr. Tung Thanh Nguyen is a Professor of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), where he provides medical care to a diverse patient population and teaches clinicians. He also serves as Director of the Vietnamese Community Health Promotion Project and Principal Investigator of the Asian American Network for Cancer Awareness, Research and Training at UCSF, and in this role conducts research in health care prevention for Asian Americans. He has worked on studies to increase breast, cervical cancer, and colorectal cancer screening among Asian Americans as well as on tobacco use among Asian Americans. Dr. Nguyen was the volunteer Chair of the Asian American and Pacific Islander Team of the American Cancer Society in California. In 2002, he was awarded the American Cancer Society Control Career Development Award for his outstanding work in primary care and research. Dr. Nguyen holds a B.A. in Philosophy from Harvard University and an M.D. from the Stanford School of Medicine.
Apolo Ohno is an American short-track speed skating competitor, an eight-time medalist in the Winter Olympics, a 12-time National Champion, and America's most decorated winter Olympian. He was named the U.S. Speedskating's Athlete of the Year for 2003 and was a 2002, 2003, and 2006 finalist for the Sullivan Award, which recognizes the best amateur athlete in the U.S. In addition, Mr. Ohno has been very involved in philanthropic activities, including participating in the Global AIDS Program (GAP) campaign to fight the spread of HIV/AIDS in Africa, The Salvation Army, the Ronald McDonald House, and Nikkei Concerns, an organization that provides assistance to Japanese elders. In 2002, Mr. Ohno helped Senator Ted Kennedy launch the "Math Moves U Hippest Homework Happening" program, which gave students the opportunity to do math homework online with celebrities and athletes. Mr. Ohno is also a global ambassador for the Special Olympics.