Hello, my name is Abbi Park and I am a junior in high school.

Last year, I developed an AAPI K-8 Curriculum that was distributed to over 200+ teachers across the U.S. This pursuit stemmed from my personal experience in the education system. I recognized that schools never taught me about events or times in history that focused on the Asian American Pacific Islander community despite AAPIs being one of the earliest groups in America. 

Because of this, I want to inspire young students and provide them with a more inclusive education than what I was able to experience. This year, my curriculum will include six new lessons and one unit. My curriculum is AsianCrit-informed which means that I am using elements of the Asian Critical Race Theory framework to teach the AAPI experience accurately.

This project is so important to me because the idea that AAPIs are perpetual foreigners in America continues to be reinforced. This suggests that AAPIs were and will never be a part of the American story.

Last year, my AAPI K-8 curriculum was sponsored by the following businesses and AAPI influencers: Susan Yara, Young Yuh, Tatcha Beauty, and Bombas. I was also supported by Dion Lim and Michelle Li, both very influential changemakers in the AAPI community. Last year's curriculum was implemented in many elementary and middle schools as official class curriculum.

This year, I am partnering with the Koreatown Storytelling Program. I have been a participant in this program since my freshman year of high school. 

I hope to expand my partnerships with more of the AAPI community to raise at least $2,800. With these funds, I will be able to create an online curriculum and print multiple copies of lesson plans for teachers who are interested in my AAPI K-8 Curriculum packets. 

My mission is to legitimize AAPI counterstories in elementary-middle school curricula because AAPI stories are just as important and influential to American history. Education is the first step to empowerment.

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