AAWC 2020 Scholars

Scholar Showcase

To view our list of past scholarship recipients, please visit * Our Past Scholars * page.

2020 Scholarship Winners

Xuemi Zhang

Cecilia Moy Yep Scholar: Xuemi Zhang

Xuemi moved from the rural parts of Fuzhou, China to America when she was seven years old. At an early age, she saw her parents struggle to find stable jobs to support their family in America. She helped by being responsible for household chores and taking care of her younger brother. Xuemi works at a part-time job to pay for expenses and future college tuition, and also volunteers at the South Philadelphia Library. Even with her family obligations and work, she continues to maintain a 3.7 average at Academy at Palumbo High School and participates in extracurricular activities like the Rock Band, Robotics Club, and Choir. Xuemi believes that giving back to the community is an essential to growing up and to finding one’s purpose. She aspires to major in Business at the Community College of Philadelphia, and then finishing her degree at Temple University. Although she is still undecided about her concentration in business, Xuemi knows that her past experiences and her hardworking parents will support her journey to become the first college graduate in her family.

PECO Scholar: Yang Zheng

Yang was an immigrant child who came to the United States only knowing how to say her name in English. After a few years in the United States, she was able to translate and make phone calls for her parents. As a student at the Bodine High School for International Affairs, Yang held the office as president of the Asian Student Association and was a member of the National Honor Society and World Affairs Council. Her commitment to giving back is evident in her 400 hours of community service, as well as, volunteering at several local organizations. Joining the Robotics Club and participating in the ACCESS Engineering Program of the University of Pennsylvania sparked her interest in engineering. Yang also attended many workshops in computer science, electrical and mechanical engineering. She will be attending Drexel University in the fall and majoring in engineering.

Yang Zheng

Winnie Wong

Powell Family Foundation Scholar: Winnie Wong

Immigrating to the United States with her parents in 2003, Winnie is the first person in her immediate family to attend high school and college. At a young age, Winnie learned responsibility from her parents through translating parent teacher meetings and medical appointments. She is currently a senior at Archbishop Ryan High School and is the president of the Community Service Corps and the National Social Studies Honor Society. For the past 4 years, Winnie swam on the girls swim team, where she has won numerous medals and served as co-captain her senior year. Winnie plays the cello, and sits first chair in her school orchestra and is a member of the Philadelphia All-Catholic Orchestra. She has also been playing the piano for 14 years at Settlement Music School. In addition, Winnie has volunteered at Chinatown Medical Services for the past 2 summers, translating for Chinese speaking patients and filing medical documents. This fall, Winnie will enter New York University pursuing Neuroscience and Bioinformatics in the hopes of becoming a pediatric neurologist.