AAJA-Philly Trip to West Windsor, NJ, on 6/8

“ASIAN AMERICANS: LOCAL LEADERSHIP”

Please join us on Saturday, June 8, as AAJA-Philadelphia will be making a special visit to West Windsor, New Jersey (near Princeton), to meet Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh and several community representatives and professionals from the greater Princeton area.

West Windsor is an eclectic town with a 37% Asian American population and many successful people living and working in the area. It is directly the midpoint between New York and Philadelphia, accessible via train.

West Windsor’s Asian American leadership is unique and intriguing — Shing-Fu Hsueh, the town’s mayor since the spring of 2001, is a first-generation Taiwanese American. Hsueh sits on the national board of SmartGrowth America and advises President Obama’s staff on matters of urban development and ecological concerns.

The Town Council President is Kamal Khanna, an Indian-American entrepreneur. Hemant Marathe, the head of the school board for West Windsor-Plainsboro (one of NJ’s best districts), is also Indian American.

This will be a good opportunity for AAJA-Philly students and journalists to discuss a number of issues impacting the Asian American community in a growing, prominent suburb next to Princeton and the challenges of being an Asian American rising in the U.S. political arena. There are also many corporations and different career opportunities in the Central New Jersey area.

Schedule:

Saturday, June 8, 11 a.m.-11:30 a.m.: Meet at the West Windsor Community Farmers’ Market (featured in the NY Times).

The market is located in the parking lot of the Princeton Junction NJ Transit train station. It is easy to get to from Philly via SEPTA, then NJ Transit. See below for schedule times.
(For driving directions, see www.westwindsorfarmersmarket.org/directions).

11:45 a.m.: Meet with Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh in West Windsor’s town hall.

12:30 p.m.: Meet and interact with the other Asian American leaders. This will be done in an informal setting.

• Mr. Kamal Khanna, West Windsor Council President for 2011 & 2012
• Mr. Hemant Marathe, West-Windsor-Plainsboro School Board President
• Dr. Yibao Xu, WW-P School Board member and CUNY Professor of Mathematics
• Dr. Ron Slinn, Chairman of the West Windsor Shade Tree Commission and Duke University Professor Emeritus (Forestry)

(More speakers may be added as the date approaches.)

1:30 p.m.: Finish. We can then walk to a place for lunch. Nearby is a Japanese restaurant called Mizu, PJ’s Pancake House, and other options.

RSVP: By Monday, June 3, to aajaphiladelphia@gmail.com.

Have any questions or want to learn more about these speakers? Contact board member Rikki Massand at rikki26@gmail.com or 860-436-1378.

Going by train from Philly? Here’s how:

• Get the Septa regional rail train from Market East (9:40am), Suburban Station (9:45am), or 30th Street Station (9:49am), heading to Trenton, NJ.  One way fare is $10.  The train will arrive in Trenton at 10:35am.
• At Trenton, transfer to the New Jersey Transit train.  It leaves at 10:59am, and will arrive in Princeton Junction at 11:12am.  One way fare is $4.75 — purchase tickets on the platform at the NJ Transit ticket kiosk.
• Meet other AAJA-Philly members at the farmers’ market, and walk to Mayor Shing-Fu Hsueh’s town hall together.

For further train-travel questions, contact board member Michelle Shinseki at mshinseki@gmail.com.

Member Monday: Steve Bien-Aimé

Steve Bien-Aimé

Steve Bien-Aimé is a second-year Ph.D. student at Penn State University with research interests in race and gender portrayals in news and sports. He was a former treasurer and national board rep for AAJA-Philly. In his journalism career, Steve worked at The News Journal in Delaware starting as a news copy editor, and later writing a business column and serving as night online update editor and an internship coordinator. He next went to The Baltimore Sun where he served as a sports copy editor. Following that, he moved on to FOXSports.com in Los Angeles where he was the boxing/mixed martial arts editor and later deputy NFL editor.

• Super power he wants: Mind reading
• Signature saying: Hey, dude

Are you an AAJA member who would like to be featured on Member Monday? Contact social media director Michelle Shinseki at aajaphiladelphia@gmail.com. 

Member Monday: Rikki Massand

AAJA Philly’s student outreach coordinator is Rikki N. Massand, who reports on business, politics, education, and the achievements of minorities for US1 Publishing in Princeton, NJ. In 2012, Rikki authored a chapter on social media marketing for the book “Sports Publicity: A Practical Approach.” Previously he served as editor of US1′s West Windsor-Plainsboro News. Rikki has written for amNew York, Little India, Asianweek, Hyphen, The Long Island Press, and most notably China Daily as their U.S. correspondent. He has two cute daughters, Shakira, 6, and Desiré, 2.

Super power he wants: To be a friendly ghost, so I could play tricks on people, float through the wall, and make Halloween waaaaay fun!

Signature saying: Give the words wings.

Are you an AAJA member who would like to be featured on Member Monday? Contact social media director Michelle Shinseki at aajaphiladelphia@gmail.com. 

Anna Pan and Camisha Brown, Vijaya L. Balaji Scholarship Winners!

Congratulations to the winners of AAJA-Philadelphia’s scholarship, the Vijaya L. Balaji Scholarship – Anna Pan, a University of Pennsylvania junior, and Camisha D. Brown, a Penn State freshman.

In the scholarship’s inaugural year, the AAJA-Philly board and scholarship donor, Murali Balaji, decided to award the scholarship to two students because we had two strong leading candidates.

Anna, who is an AAJA-Philly member, has interned at The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News and Philadelphia City Paper. She has also worked at the Daily Pennsylvanian. She is currently interning at WHYY. Anna, a junior at University of Pennsylvania, says, “I can’t wait to pursue a career in journalism and I’m so grateful for this award!”

Camisha, who was raised in Northeast Philadelphia, graduated from the Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing Arts. She has also interned at WHYY. She would like to become a news anchor and talk-show host. Camisha, a Penn State freshman, says, “I am very appreciative to have won this scholarship. This is a great start to an immense career path.”

This scholarship was made possible by AAJA-Philly member and former chapter president Murali Balaji in honor of his mother, who was a committed supporter of the chapter and who believed in the education of minority journalists.

Scholarship Lead: John Curley Scholarship Fund to Attend National Convention

The AAJA National Convention in New York, from Aug. 21 to 24 this year, will be a wonderful opportunity to network with other journalists from around the country, to participate in panel discussions with seasoned journalists, and to attend a career fair and resume critique sessions.

For the fourth year in a row, AAJA-Philadelphia will help pay the expenses for one member to go to the annual convention.

Our ability to do so comes from the kind generosity of our donor, John Curley, the former president, chairman and CEO of the Gannett company, who has been a strong supporter of the Philadelphia chapter of AAJA.

WHAT: The chapter will reimburse the selected member up to $1,000 in expenses to attend the convention. These expenses include the registration fee for the convention, transportation (bus), and hotel costs. (You may be asked to share your hotel room with another AAJA-Philly member.) We will not be reimbursing for meals, taxis, or other local transportation unless your other costs are less than $1,000 total. In that case, we will reimburse these other expenses for a total of up to $1,000 as long as you have the receipts.

TO APPLY:
– You must be a current dues-paying AAJA-Philly chapter member to apply.
– We will consider current students or professionals who are trying to establish themselves in the journalism field.
– Send a one-page essay telling the AAJA-Philly board why you want to go to the convention, how you think you will benefit from it, and why you need help with the expenses. E-mail your essay to:aajaphiladelphia@gmail.com

DEADLINE: Apply by the end of the day, Friday, April 5, 2013.
AAJA-Philly board members will review all applications and announce the scholarship winner by Monday, April 8.
Expenses will be reimbursed in the form of a check after the convention. You must give us copies of your receipts.
(If a board member wants to apply, he/she will not be part of the judging process.)

OTHER REQUIREMENTS:

The winning applicant will also be required to:
- Register for the convention by the early-bird registration date of Friday, April 12. (The early-bird student registration fee is $100; for professionals, it is $225.)

– Give an informal talk at the AAJA-Philly September chapter meeting, currently scheduled for Sept. 22, about what you learned at the convention.

– Assist in the planning, organizing or day-of duties for an AAJA-Philly event currently being planned for October.

MORE INFORMATION: For more info about the convention, visit: http://www.aaja.org/category/convention/new-york-2013/

To see the registration-fee schedule, visit: http://www.aaja.org/aaja2013/

We encourage everyone who wants to go and who needs help with expenses to apply for this!

Member Monday: Stephanie Tsao

Stephanie Tsao is an emerging multimedia journalist who joined AAJA-Philadelphia in 2012. She is freelancing for the National Public Radio’s NewsWorks covering New Jersey. Through WHYY’s Hamilton Commons, she learned how to shoot and edit video, creating a documentary about a family in New Jersey impacted by Hurricane Sandy. In the future, she would like to report on energy and environment. Outside of work, she enjoys travel and has visited Shanghai, China, Australia, and New Zealand. She also loves exploring Philly’s art museums. Contact her at www.ecotsao.com.

Super power she wants: Ability to fly, making travel quicker and much cheaper!

Signature saying: Live, love, laugh, and learn.

Are you an AAJA member who would like to be featured on Member Monday? Contact social media director Michelle Shinseki at aajaphiladelphia@gmail.com. 

Pictures from the 2/16 AAJA-Philly Potluck

On February 16, members and friends of AAJA-Philadelphia got together for a potluck in Chinatown. We enjoyed many dishes, and much dishing! Thanks to all who attended.

If you attended the potluck, and took photos, please send them to aajaphiladelphia@gmail.com, and they can be included in this photo collage.