Acknowledgements

We are thankful for the generosity and funding support of the Long Family Foundation, the Kay Family Foundation, Wells Fargo, and St. Joseph Hospital, which made this research, report, video, and website possible.

We would also like to thank Dr. Bill Maurer, Dean of the School of Social Sciences, University of California, Irvine, and his staff for their support and partnership throughout this project.

We are especially appreciative of our incredible Research and Design Team, who led the development of this report:

  • Report Authors:
    • Dr. Linda Trinh Vo, Professor, Department of Asian American Studies, University of California, Irvine
    • Laureen D. Hom, PhD candidate, Department of Urban Planning and Public Policy, University of California, Irvine
  • Copyediting: Dr. Dorothy M. Taguchi, The Linguistic Edge
  • Report and Web Design: Design Action Collective
  • Videography: Dennis Lee, Kulture Machine
  • Photos courtesy of: Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Orange County, Ellen Ahn, Hussam Ayloush, Mary Anne Foo, Jei Garlitos, Caroline Hahn, Tam Nguyen, Tricia Nguyen, Vattana Peong, Edwin Tiongson, Linda Trinh Vo, Audrey Yamagata-Noji, and Cyril Yu

Suggested Citation:

Vo, Linda Trinh, and Laureen D. Hom. 2018. Transforming Orange County: Assets and Needs of Asian Americans & Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders. Orange County, CA: Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Orange County.

The statements made and views expressed are solely the responsibility of the authors.

This report would not have been possible without the participation of community leaders who serve the Orange County Asian American & Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities. We would like to thank the following interviewees for sharing their invaluable time and expertise:

Ellen Ahn, executive director of Korean Community Services

Hussam Ayloush, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, Greater Los Angeles Area Chapter (CAIR-LA)

Shikha Bhatnagar, executive director of the South Asian Network

Mary Anne Foo, founder and executive director of the Orange County Asian and Pacific Islander Community Alliance (OCAPICA)

Jei Garlitos, principal and coordinator of Alternative Education with the Anaheim Union High School District

Caroline Hahn, past president of the Orange County Korean American Bar Association

Naz Hamid, parent in Irvine; ran for the local school board

Ken Inouye, former chair of the Orange County Human Relations Commission; past president of the national Japanese American Citizens League

Charles Kim, cofounder and first executive director of the Korean American Coalition

Eduardo Lee, cofounder of Wahoo’s Fish Taco

Michael Matsuda, superintendent of the Anaheim Union High School District; founding member of the Orange County Asian Pacific Islander Community Alliance (OCAPICA)

Tam Nguyen, former president of the Vietnamese American Chamber of Commerce; owner of Advance Beauty College; former president of the California State University, Fullerton (CSUF) Alumni Association

Tricia Nguyen, CEO of Southland Integrated Services, formerly known as the Vietnamese Community of Orange County (VNCOC)

Jonathan Paik, Orange County director of the Korean Resource Center

Jane Pang, cofounder and board member of Pacific Islander Health Partnership (PIHP)

Victor Pang, cofounder of Pacific Islander Health Partnership (PIHP)

Vattana Peong, executive director of The Cambodian Family

Edwin Tiongson, project director of ELEVATE AAPI (Equitable Learning Experience Valuing Achievement, Transfer and Empowering Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders) at Irvine Valley College

Audrey Yamagata-Noji, vice president of Student Services at Mount San Antonio College; served on the Santa Ana School Board for 25 years; volunteer with Leadership Education for Asian Pacifics (LEAP)

Cyril Yu, former president and current board member of the South Coast Chinese Cultural Association; senior deputy district attorney at the Orange County District Attorney’s office; ran for the Irvine School Board

We would also like to acknowledge the exceptional staff at Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Orange County & Los Angeles, who led the project management, drafting of policy recommendations, and editing of this report: Sylvia Kim, Orange County Regional Director; Katelyn Ogawa, Orange County Policy Coordinator; Karin Wang, Vice President of Programs & Communications.

We would also like to thank the following Asian Americans Advancing Justice staff for their input and support: Randy M. Bunnao, Communications Director; Heng Foong, Senior Policy Manager- Health Access Project; Nicole Gon Ochi, Supervising Attorney – Impact Litigation; Laboni Hoq, Litigation Director; Daniel Ichinose, Project Director – Demographic Research Project; Jessica Jinn, Communications Manager; Deanna Kitamura, Project Director – Voting Rights; Doreena Wong, Project Director – Health Access Project.

Lastly, a special thanks to our volunteer transcribers Joshua Chiu, Nicholas Colell, Nisha Kashyap, Megan Kim, Amanda Ong, Jean Park, Alexander Pequinota, and Gloria Yang.