Four education students named to Husky 100

UW College of Education

Apr 10 2018

I aspire to continue creating inclusive spaces for students and continuing to find energy and joy in empowering others along their own journeys.

Ali Cho

Four University of Washington College of Education students sharing a common desire to advocate for and empower young people, particularly those from marginalized populations, have been named to this year’s cohort of the Husky 100.

Representing the College are:

Lin Wu (PhD, Curriculum and Instruction)
Dylan Tran (BA, Education, Communities and Organizations)
Tsewone Melaku (BS, Education, Learning and Society)
Ali Cho (BA, Education, Learning and Society)

Wu, a first-generation immigrant from China, worked as a teacher and principal in an underserved Chicano/a community in Arizona for seven years before entering the UW’s graduate program in curriculum and instruction.

“I am committed to train teacher candidates (TCs) who want to serve marginalized students in K-12 classrooms,” Wu said. “Through bridging theory with practice, I endeavor to create transformative spaces wherein TCs and I learn from and with each other, sustain open hearts and minds and embody education as the practice of freedom.”

Tran, a senior Education, Communities and Organizations major, has served as a volunteer tutor in social studies and writing at Seattle’s Franklin High School for the UW Pipeline Project and as a Community Accountability Board member for the diversion unit of Pierce County Juvenile Court.

“As a child of Southeast Asian refugees and product of the Hilltop [neighborhood] of Tacoma, I didn’t think I would make it,” Tran said. However, through TRiO programs designed to help low-income Americans enter college, graduate and move on to participate more fully in America’s economic and social life, Tran said he’s been able to realize his passion and purpose.

“One day, I hope to come back to my hometown as a TRiO professional to continue the work of empowering youth and next generation of scholars and leaders,” Tran said.

Tsewone Melaku, a senior Education, Learning and Society minor, has served in leadership positions with the Dream Project, which partners UW students with first-generation and underrepresented high school students to assist in the college admissions process. Her interests include figuring out ways to create better technology—and technical literacy—for underserved K-12 classrooms.

“As a Black woman who is a first-generation college student and the daughter of Ethiopian immigrants, the UW has provided me with the experiences and skills I need to realize that I want to use my engineering degree to increase STEM exposure and education in underserved communities,” said Melaku, a recipient of the College's Zesbaugh Scholarship. “According to most of the world, I should not be here. And that's exactly why I have to be.”

Ali Cho, also a senior Education, Learning and Society minor, serves as director of the UW Leaders program offering leadership and professional development workshops and leadership service projects for diverse UW student populations.

“My time here at the UW has taught me the importance of breaking down barriers and how through mentorship, I can encourage others do the same,” Cho said. “I aspire to continue creating inclusive spaces for students and continuing to find energy and joy in empowering others along their own journeys.”

The Husky 100 recognizes 100 UW undergraduate and graduate students from Bothell, Seattle and Tacoma in all areas of study who are making the most of their time at the UW. Husky 100 students are making a difference on campus, in their communities and for the future through their passion, leadership and commitment.