Atlanta Asian American College Fair

9/10/2016 10:00 AM

College Fair to Help Immigrant Families Navigate College Admissions Process

Atlanta Asian American College Fair is inviting metro Atlanta's college-bound families to Peachtree Ridge High School in Suwanee this Saturday.

The College Fair, in its 5th year, is an inclusive higher education expo designed for Atlanta’s growing immigrant community. Expert seminars and inspirational speakers, as well as representatives from dozens of colleges are gathering to help hundreds of families in choosing, financing and succeeding in college.

For many Asian teens growing up in the South, finding successful role models who have struggled with and overcome similar challenges of personal identity and social bias is exceedingly rare.

The College Fair's opening ceremony at 10 a.m. will feature two prominent Asian Americans, an actress and an entrepreneur, who will speak frankly about their teenage years and some of the smart and regrettable decisions they made.

Internationally recognized actress Arden Cho, best known as 'Kira' in Teen Wolf, will speak about growing up with very few others like her in the west Texas town of Amarillo.

Christopher Lee, the 31-year-old Chinese American co-founder and CEO of the Forbes-recognized medical devices company Vertera Spine, will share stories of how he went from being "almost embarrassingly like any other Asian American kid" who "barely had any time to make friends in high school" to a fraternity president and a starting the first company to FDA-clear, manufacture and implant surface porous synthetic bone in humans.

Seven expert seminars will shine light on topics like preparing for college interview, maximizing financial aid, SAT vs. ACT, researching for the right type of college, and dual enrollment.

In addition to 30 universities represented by admissions officers and alumni representatives, current college students from major Georgia colleges will provide high school students with tips on campus life, choosing their major, and finding internships.

The raffle drawing at 1:30pm - the grand prize is a round trip ticket to Seoul - is expected to generate a lot of excitement as well.

The Atlanta Asian American College Fair is hosted by Korea Daily's Atlanta bureau and sponsored by McDonald's. Admission is free, but participants are encouraged to register at aaacf2016.eventbrite.com to avoid long lines at the door.

What: Atlanta Asian American College Fair

When: September 10, 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Where: Peachtree Ridge High School, 1555 Old Peachtree Rd NW, Suwanee, GA 30024

List of participating colleges:

Yale University

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Naval Academy

Washington University in St. Louis

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Princeton University

Columbia University

West Point