People

Board Members  

Advisory Council

Staff

Board Members

Maulik PancholyMaulik Pancholy, Co-Founder (he/him)

Maulik Pancholy is an award-winning actor, author and activist whose work has spanned hit television shows, the Broadway stage and films. He is best known for playing Jonathan on NBC’s award-winning comedy 30 Rock, Sanjay on the Showtime hit series Weeds, and Neal on the NBC comedy Whitney. He is also the voice of Baljeet on Disney’s Phineas and Ferb, and the title voice of Sanjay on Nickelodeon’s Sanjay and Craig – the first lead Indian-American character on a network cartoon.

His debut novel, THE BEST AT IT — about a gay, Indian American boy coming into his own — was named a 2020 Stonewall Honor Book, a 2019 Junior Library Guild Selection and received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly,  The American Library Association’s Booklist and Kirkus Reviews. 

As an activist, he has long been an advocate for the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) and LGBTQIA+ communities. He is the recipient of the Asian American Arts Alliance Award, the Human Rights Campaign’s Visibility Award, and was named to Out Magazine’s Top 100 list. He regularly speaks at universities and corporations on the topics of diversity and inclusion.

In 2014, President Obama appointed Pancholy to serve on the President’s Advisory Commission on AAPIs. During his three-year tenure at the White House, he helped launch Act to Change.

 

Rebecca Lee, Co-Founder (she/her)

Rebecca Lee is an entrepreneur, seasoned communications professional, and community advocate. Rebecca delivers more than a decade of strategic communications experience across government, consulting, and nonprofit environments. 

Rebecca was previously Communications Director for the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. At the Initiative, she launched the award-winning anti-bullying campaign Act To Change that she now leads as a nonprofit today.

Rebecca has served in public affairs roles at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Rebecca joined the federal government as a Presidential Management Fellow (PMF), selected from graduate programs across the country in 2011. Rebecca holds a Bachelor’s degree from Cornell University and a Master’s degree from Columbia University. At Cornell, Rebecca led a diverse coalition to found the Asian & Asian-American Center (A3C).

Rebecca serves on the Advisory Council of the Conference on Asian Pacific American Leadership (CAPAL). Her leadership as Chair in 2013 helped transform CAPAL from an all-volunteer organization to one with paid, full-time staff.

 

Jill Yu, Co-Founder (she/her)

In 2015, Jill served as an Advisor at the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. She worked on critical initiatives including “Act to Change”, promoting enrollment for healthcare, organizing the philanthropic and public and private partnership event at the White House, and working with senior federal agency executives in how their agency can better serve Asian American populations.

Jill came to federal service as a Presidential Management Fellow. Prior to federal service, Jill was a Staff Attorney for the American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law, and worked on the cross-section of foster youth and education as well as policy issues impacting vulnerable youth.

Jill is an active member of the National Filipino American Lawyers Association. Jill also founded and served as the inaugural President of the Filipino American Lawyers Association of Washington, DC, an affiliate of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association.

 

Belinda Lei, Founding Board Member (she/her)

Belinda is a product manager at Microsoft Azure and a former product manager and software engineer at Citibank in their Global Consumer Technology division. She received her MBA from the Yale School of Management and previously served as a Strategy Consultant Associate at Tyton Partners, an advisory and investment banking firm that specializes in the global knowledge sector where her duties included working with companies, investors, and organizations in the private and public sectors to drive insights for capitalizing on education-related opportunities.

Prior to joining Tyton Partners in June 2018, Belinda held multiple internships in the public and private sector, including the White House Initiative on AAPIs and FiscalNote. While at the White House Initiative, Belinda worked as a Senior Intern to spearhead the launch of the AAPI Bullying Prevention Task Force, a coordinated cross-agency effort to address community concerns about bullying across the country.

During her time at Act To Change, Belinda has held positions including Interim Co-Executive Director and Managing Director. She spearheaded the creation of the 2021 Asian American Data Report, Homeroom Anti-Bullying Workshops, and the Youth Ambassador Program. Her workstreams cover programs, operations, fundraising, partnerships, and communications/marketing.

Her debut novel, Not THAT Rich, was the #1 New Release across Immigration fiction & Asian American Fiction while also achieving bestseller status for Asian American Young Adult fiction.

 

 

Josef Canaria, Board Member (he/him)

Josef Canaria is currently a Program Manager at the Michigan Coalition to End Domestic & Sexual Violence (MCEDSV) where he works to promote an understanding of domestic and sexual violence intervention and prevention best practices for advocates, allied organizations and professionals, and the general public. He was previously the Campus Coordinator at the Louisiana Foundation Against Sexual Assault (LaFASA) for six years, where he worked with colleges & universities throughout the state to help improve their policies and protocols related to the response and prevention of sexual violence. He also serves on the board of Shift Change, an organization working to prevent sexual harassment in the hospitality industry. 

Josef is actively involved with the LGBT Community Center of New Orleans as one of the leaders of “NOLA Gaymers”, a social group for queer folx who have interests in board games, video games, and other less mainstream pop culture fandoms. Prior to living in New Orleans, Josef served as an Americorps member through CIty Year San Antonio and is also a proud Colorado State University alum. He is an outspoken fat, femme, Filipino immigrant and hopes to help make spaces he is a part of more feminist and inclusive of all identities.

 

Jamie K. Lok, Board Member (she/her)

Jamie is committed to advancing health equity and social justice, particularly for women and children. Her public health career spans academia, county government, and federal government. In 2015, Jamie served as an Advisor at the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. She worked on initiatives including the historic White House Summit on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and efforts to improve federal agency engagement with AAPI communities around grants. Prior to federal service, Jamie worked for the Montgomery County (Maryland) Department of Health and Human Services’ Asian American Health Initiative managing capacity building and community outreach programs. Her research at Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland focused on international health and the socio-cultural influences of substance abuse.

Jamie holds a Master of Public Health degree from the University of Maryland College Park, where she was active with the Asian American Student Union and received the President’s Ethnic Minority Achievement Award recognizing outstanding contributions to the University’s equity efforts for her campus activism. She is a founding member of the University’s Asian Pacific American Alumni Network and is a former board member of the American Public Health Association’s Asian Pacific Islander Caucus for Public Health. Jamie is a second-generation Cambodian American and a mom to three young children. Her family fled to the D.C. area after escaping war and genocide under the Khmer Rouge regime.

Anthony Reyes, Board Member (he/him)

Originally from Miami, Florida, Anthony Reyes currently works as a staff member in the United States Senate. In addition to his day job, Anthony also serves as co-Senate Vice President of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Staff Association, or CAPASA. Prior to his current role, Anthony led programming at a national non-profit organization in DC focused on filling the political pipeline of Asian Pacific Americans across the country. Before moving to DC full-time, he gained experience organizing the AAPI community in the 2016 election and intern at various think tanks, trade associations, and on Capitol Hill. He is excited to support the important mission of Act to Change and empower our youth.

 

 

Nancy Tien, Board Member (she/her)

Nancy Tiên (she/her) is a project coordinator, community organizer, diversity, equity and inclusion facilitator, education advocate and former educator. Nancy served as a bilingual teacher for seven years in the Dallas area, while also pursuing advocacy and policy opportunities as a Racial Justice Fellow with Teach for America Dallas-Ft.Worth, Campaign Activities and Management Program (CAMP) Fellow and Leadership ISD Dallas Campus Voices fellow.

As a child of Vietnamese immigrants and a first-generation college graduate, Nancy is passionate in pursuing equitable outcomes and systems for communities of color. In 2013, she returned to her hometown and district and taught in Dallas ISD as a Teach for America Corps Member. After seeing the crucial connection between policy and students’ success in the classroom, she left teaching to pursue policy and advocacy roles to further improve educational systems. She now serves as an education consultant with Education Powered, an election coordinator with Dallas Kids First and a lead organizer and founding member of Dallas Communities Organizing to Reach Equity (CORE), an organizing alliance pursuing the creation of equitable systems for Dallas youth. With Dallas CORE, Nancy led efforts to amend local district policy to advance racial equity through improving transparency and accountability.

As an Asian American and woman of color, Nancy feels strongly to advocate for social justice and breaking the cycle of bullying. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her partner and two dogs, cooking and trying new food, and playing video games. Nancy received her Bachelor’s degree in Applied Learning and Development from the University of Texas at Austin.

 

Advisory Council Members

Bing Chen, Chairman, Gold House & General Partner, AUM Group, Advisory Council Member (he/him)

Bing Chen is an entrepreneur, creator, and an equalization builder. He is Chairman and Co-founder of Gold House, the largest collective of pioneering leaders dedicated to forging stronger bonds that enhance Asian representation and success. He is also General Partner and Co-founder of AUM Group, a multicultural film fund; and serves as a Board Director and Advisor to several leading digital media companies including Google’s Global Marketing Board, Snap’s Yellow Incubator, Omnicom’s Sparks & Honey, Baobab Studios, Oura Health, and more. Previously, he was YouTube’s Global Head of Creator Development and Management, where he was one of the original and principal architects of the multi-billion dollar influencer ecosystem that supports 500 million creators worldwide. He is a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree; a Hollywood Reporter Next Gen Leader; a Hollywood Reporter Most Influential Agent of Change; ADCOLOR Catalyst Award Honoree; Asia Society Asia 21 Young Leader; Magic Johnson’s 32 Under 32 Leader; and Asian Chamber of Commerce Entrepreneur of the Year. Bing is a third culture kid across North America and Asia, finally graduating from the University of Pennsylvania. He was born in Knoxville, Tennessee, which becomes obvious at $11.99 buffets.

 

Philip W. Chung, Creative Director, YOMYOMF, Advisory Council Member (he/him)

Philip W. Chung oversees the creative content for YOMYOMF, director Justin Lin’s (STAR TREK BEYOND, FAST & FURIOUS franchise) Asian American-centric digital company, and has worked in various capacities in film, TV, theater and digital. Previously, he was the co-founder/co-Artistic Director of Lodestone Theatre Ensemble, an Asian American theater company, for ten years. Chung has developed projects for Google, Machinima, Comcast/NBCUniversal, Ovation TV, IFC, Legendary Pictures, ABC and others. Upcoming projects include FAMILY STYLE (an Asian food series for Warner Bros/Stage 13), MOONSHADOW (a LGBTQ-centric horror feature for Gunpowder & Sky), a Christmas musical for Disney Channel, and a theatrical adaptation of the beloved children’s book, EVERYONE POOPS.

 

Tan France, TV Personality, Advisory Council Member (he/him)

Tan France has been a successful fashion designer behind-the-scenes for over 15 years and became a breakout star following the launch of the Emmy-winning reboot of the reality makeover series “Queer Eye” in 2018. Surrounded by an all-new cast, France is the witty wardrobe wiz leading the charge in the fashion department, ready to make America fabulous again one makeover at a time. But the series is about so much more than just new clothes to the British-born fashion advisor; it’s about real-life issues, representation, and acceptance on all sides.

Tan can currently be seen starring as the co-host of Netflix’s new global design competition series, “Next in Fashion” alongside Alexa Chung. Tan also released his NY Times best-selling memoir “Naturally Tan” as well as the first season of his viral YouTube series “Dressing Funny,” which features him making over his celebrity friends including Tina Fey, Amy Poehler, Nick Kroll, Miranda Sings, Pete Davidson, and John Mulaney.

Prior to his media career, Tan was the creative mind behind successful brands including the popular women’s clothing lines Kingdom & State and Rachel Parcell, Inc. In Tan’s early years, he spent his summers working in his grandfather’s denim factory while he secretly enrolled in fashion college in preparation to start a new chapter as a fabulous design star.

 

Sarah Ha, Vice President, National Community Alliances, Teach For America, Advisory Council Member (she/her)

Sarah Ha serves as the Vice President of National Community Alliances at Teach For America (TFA). In this role, she is responsible for driving the organization’s external engagement strategy with national civil rights and aligned organizations, leading and working alongside a team of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion senior leaders who manage the Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) Community Alliances, Black Community Alliances, DACA Initiative, Latinx Community Alliances, LGBTQ+ Community Initiative, and Native Alliances. Her team collectively works to bring the intersectional partnerships, advocacy, resources, and opportunities to further cultivate the skills and mindsets necessary for systems change in their networks to shape a child-centric educational equity ecosystem.

Previously, Sarah launched and led TFA’s National AAPI Initiative, which aimed to work alongside other organizations committed to deliver on the promise of equal opportunity for every child and help grow the leadership of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) educators inside and outside of the classroom. In that role, she was responsible for cultivating and building relationships with external grassroots and grasstops organizations, influencers, and media committed to strengthening AANHPI educators, students, and their communities. In 2018, TFA’s AAPI Alliances, through Sarah’s leadership, advocacy, and partnership building, was awarded the Leadership Education for Asian Pacific’s (LEAP) Community Award. 

Prior to joining TFA, Sarah was the Senior Director of Programs and Student Affairs at the Gates Millennium Scholars (GMS) Program and the Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund (APIASF) in Washington, DC. There, she oversaw the strategic development and implementation of academic support, leadership development, and community-building programs for 16,000+ recipients of the GMS and APIASF scholarship awards. 

Sarah has over 15 years of experience working in multicultural affairs, conducting research on the educational experiences of underrepresented and underserved students in higher education and implementing diversity, equity, and inclusion programming and initiatives. Prior to serving with APIASF and GMS, Sarah worked in the Office of the Dean of Students at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), the UCLA LGBT Campus Resource Center, and served as an Intergroup Dialogue Facilitator dedicated to creating inclusive, affirming, and diverse campus environments. 

Sarah earned her Masters of Education degree in Student Affairs, Higher Education & Organizational Change from UCLA. She received her bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Faith, Peace & Justice from Boston College. She currently lives in Queens, NY with her beloved husband and younger sister.

 

Michelle Lee, VP of Global Editorial & Publishing at Netflix, Advisory Council Member (she/her)

Michelle Lee is the VP of Global Editorial & Publishing at Netflix. Prior to joining Netflix in 2020, she was Editor in Chief of Allure. Since taking the helm of Allure in 2015, Lee has been committed to championing diversity and expanding the definition of beauty.

She was named Adweek’s 2017 Editor of the Year while Allure won Magazine of the Year for their groundbreaking covers, such as the July 2017 This Is American Beauty cover featuring model Halima Aden in her hijab. Lee and her staff declared the “End of Anti-Aging” in their September 2017 issue and took an oath to remove the term “anti-aging” from their own lexicon. It was a bold statement that challenged readers and brands to look at and speak about aging in a more positive way — and it has made ripples in the beauty industry and beyond.

Throughout her time at Allure, Lee has been uniquely committed to Asian-American issues and representation, featuring stars like Gemma Chan, Naomi Osaka, Priyanka Chopra, Fei Fei Sun, Fernanda Ly, Soo Joo Park, and K-pop stars Jihyo and JB on the cover of Allure; and she’s highlighted notable Asian-American voices on The Allure Podcast, including Awkwafina, Prabal Gurung, and Phillip Lim.

Lee was previously the Editor in Chief and Chief Marketing Officer at NYLON, Co-Founder and Chief Content and Strategy Officer at branded content agency Magnified Media, and held senior positions at Mademoiselle, Glamour, and more.

She is a Board member at ColorComm, a member of Adweek’s Advisory Council and Twitter’s Content Council, and she was named to the Gold House A100 of most influential Asians in 2018, 2019, and 2020, as well as Digiday’s Glossy 50, and Create & Cultivate’s Creative 100 in 2017. She was a recipient of a 2019 ColorComm Circle Award, and Allure was nominated for a National Magazine Award for its March 2018 issue The Culture of Hair featuring Lupita Nyong’o.

 

Hudson Yang, Actor (Fresh Off the Boat), Advisory Council Member (he/him)

Hudson Yang, named by Variety, The Wrap and other publications as a rising star to watch in young Hollywood, spent six years as irrepressible protagonist Eddie on ABC’s historic Asian American family sitcom Fresh Off the Boat. His performance garnered him multiple NAACP Image Awards nominations for Outstanding Performance by a Youth, and Teen Choice Awards nominations as Choice Scene Stealer in 2016 and Outstanding TV Comedy Actor in 2017 and 2018. Yang has also appeared on Family Guy, Disney’s Sophia the First, Liv and Maddie and The Lion Guard and PBS’s Cyberchase. He starred in indie rapper Jason Chu’s acclaimed music video Marvels as Chu’s younger self and was cast in Orange Is the New Black co-executive producer Lauren Morelli’s directorial debut, Hum, opposite Samira Wiley (“Poussey” on OITNB). Born and bred in Brooklyn, Yang now lives in Ladera Heights, California.

 

Deborah Yeh, Chief Marketing Officer for Sephora Americas and Sephora’s Global Chief Purpose Officer, Advisory Council Member (she/her)

Deborah Yeh is the Chief Marketing Officer for Sephora Americas and Sephora’s Global Chief Purpose Officer. In her Americas role, Deborah is responsible for cultivating the brand experience at Sephora and ensuring it is differentiated and compelling across all marketing touchpoints — from communications and creative, to loyalty and personalization. In her Purpose role, Deborah is focused on driving Sephora’s global mission to expand the way the world sees beauty. Prior to Sephora, Deborah held various marketing and digital leadership roles at brands including Target and Old Navy.

Deborah has been recognized as one of the 25 most innovative CMOs in the world by Business Insider, Forbes CMO Next, Adweek 50, Campaign 50, The Influence 100 by PRovoke, and Women Worth Watching by Diversity Journal. She is passionate about driving more inclusion in marketing and serves on several advisory boards aligned to this mission, including the ANA’s Alliance for Inclusive and Multicultural Marketing as well as BRIDGE.

 

Staff

Dikshant Rajbhandari, Communications Manager (he/him)

Dikshant Rajbhandari is a digital marketing consultant for AAPI organizations. Originally from Nepal, he attended Colby-Sawyer College in New Hampshire. After completing his Bachelors in Business Administration, he worked as a Community Manager for ACE NextGen, a nonprofit organization focused on bringing together Asian American entrepreneurs to share ideas and help each other in growing their businesses. Dikshant is passionate about amplifying marginalized voices and helping AAPI organizations reach their audience. He enjoys exploring the world, and learning and teaching languages.