KEVIN WU (KEVJUMBA)
COMEDIAN, HUMANITARIAN, ACTOR // KEYNOTE SPEAKER Kevin Wu is the famous YouTube star, “KevJumba”. He is a celebrated comedian, humanitarian, and actor, and his other YouTube channel, “JumbaFund”, is dedicated to contributing all revenue to nonprofit organizations. After becoming a viral sensation overnight in 2007, Wu found himself soaring through the ranks to become the number one subscribed comedian on YouTube in just under one year, with over 2.5 million subscribers. His unique humor and comedic style, along with relatable anecdotes about school, relationships, and family life, started a movement in the YouTube comedy scene. JumbaFund, with its own wealth of subscribers, successfully sponsored the construction of a new high school in Kenya. Some feature films starring Wu include a film called “Man-Up!” featuring Justin Chon (on Netflix), and “Revenge of the Green Dragons” produced by Martin Scorsese. In 2013, Wu decided to step away from entertainment to focus on his education, family, and religious enlightenment. |
EDDO KIM
FOUNDER & CEO, THE SUPPLY // KEYNOTE SPEAKER Eddo Kim is the founder & CEO of The Supply, a research and curriculum design nonprofit based in San Francisco, California on a mission to disrupt education systems globally that limit students from realizing their full potential and to innovate new learning pathways that unleash their power to effect positive change. The Supply is currently working with twelve schools and over 2000 youth in the slums of Nairobi, Kenya (one of them being KevJumba High School). An avid student of service learning models and civic education, Eddo graduated from three Ivy League schools (University of Pennsylvania (B.A.), Columbia University (M.A. in Education Leadership) and Harvard (Ed.M in International Education Policy)) and founded The Supply at the age of 25 to challenge misconceptions about education in the developing world and to re-think both educational content as well as educational delivery for youth living in extreme poverty. |
JASON Y. LEE
FOUNDER & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, JUBILEE PROJECT // KEYNOTE SPEAKER Jason is the founder of Jubilee Project, a digital media company that inspires young people to live for something greater. Jubilee Project has garnered over 30 million views online for various causes and featured in The Huffington Post, Buzzfeed, Mashable, The Queen Latifah show and more. In his former life, Jason was a consultant at Bain & Company and worked for Clinton Health Access Initiative in Zambia. He was raised in Overland Park, Kansas and graduated with honors from the University of Pennsylvania - The Wharton School. |
MREE
SINGER-SONGWRITER // WORKSHOP SPEAKER + PERFORMER Mree, an experimental folk artist of Taiwanese-Bulgarian descent, writes, records, and produces her own music, as well as films and edits music videos most often from the comfort of her bedroom. A strong proponent of the DIY approach, she began posting covers and original songs on YouTube at the age of 15, fostering a dedicated, nationwide fanbase. Now at 23, she has garnered over 13 million YouTube views, over 90k followers, and a steady career for herself. Over the years, she has released 3 self-produced albums, all of which have received much critical acclaim and attention from music industry professionals like Grammy Award Winning Artist, Bon Iver (Justin Vernon). Her music has also been featured on nationwide AD campaigns and TV Shows such as Grey’s Anatomy and Bones. Continuing to follower her passion, Mree is also pursuing creating soundtracks for video games. |
MAGGIE HSU
ADVISOR, ZAPPOS.COM // KEYNOTE SPEAKER Maggie Hsu is an Advisor at Zappos.com. Zappos.com is a leading online retailer headquartered in Las Vegas specializing in shoes and clothing. Previously, Maggie was Vice President and Chief of Staff at Downtown Project. Downtown Project is aiding in the revitalization of Downtown Las Vegas and encompasses a collection of over 300 investments and operations across small business, technology and real estate. Prior to that, Maggie was Director of Strategy for Brands & Commercial Services at Hilton Worldwide and a consultant at McKinsey & Company in New York. Maggie co-founded Mochi Magazine, an online magazine for young Asian American women. Maggie is also a member of the World Economic Forum's Global Shapers community. Maggie holds undergraduate and MBA degrees from Harvard University. |
SHAWNA YANG RYAN
AUTHOR // KEYNOTE + WORKSHOP SPEAKER Shawna Yang Ryan teaches in the Creative Writing Program at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa. She is the author of WATER GHOSTS and GREEN ISLAND, a novel set in martial law era Taiwan. In 2015, she was the recipient of the Elliot Cades Emerging Writer Award from the Hawai'i Literary Arts Council. |
TEDDY LIAW
CEO, NEXREP // KEYNOTE SPEAKER Teddy was born in New Jersey, moved to LA in late elementary school, and didn't identify strongly with his TA roots. Once finding his TA identity after college, he founded the Taiwanese American Professionals (TAP) and was President for several years, served as National President of the Taiwanese American Citizens League (TACL), and led several TA youth programs. He will share his identity discovery journey and how critical community building is. Teddy currently is CEO of a large multimillion dollar workforce company, NexRep. He graduated from UC Berkeley, where he was the student government President and also founded Asian American Association (AAA). He also founded and leads Global Leadership Organization, a nonprofit leadership development program. |
HO CHIE TSAI
FOUNDER, TAIWANESEAMERICAN.ORG // WORKSHOP SPEAKER Tsai is the founder of TaiwaneseAmerican.org, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and website dedicated to connecting and highlighting the new generation of Taiwanese Americans. He has spent most of his life working to build organizations and networks that serve the Asian and Taiwanese American communities. His personal mission is to inspire young people to discover their values and passions so that they can make a positive impact in this world. He is currently a board member of the Taiwanese American Foundation and a founder of Taiwanese American Professionals in San Francisco. He has been involved with the Intercollegiate Taiwanese American Students Association since its formation during the early 1990's. Professionally, Dr. Tsai is a Board-certified pediatrician on staff at the UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital. |
THE RITZ
A CAPELLA GROUP // PERFORMERS The Rits is a male a cappella group founded in 2004, and is composed of eight high school students from around the Bay Area. The group is self-run, with members arranging a majority of their own music, scheduling rehearsals, and hosting events. Their lineup consists of covers of songs that into a variety of genres, from Chinese pop to rock to R&B, and the group has performed at benefit concerts, community centers, and other events in the area. All members of the Rits come from a background of vocal music, and all strive for excellence in singing, performing, and entertaining. |