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COURIER photo/Gabriel Fenoy
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| Claremont High School sophomore Jeff Choi recently traveled to the nation’s capital with other students from all over the world. |
Mr. Choi goes to Washington
He has only been in the United States for two and a half years and already Claremont High School sophomore Jeff Choi has experienced something that many American students never get the chance to.
From March 2 through 8, Jeff joined more than 400 other students that represented 31 countries and 31 US states as a participant in the Honeywell Scholars @ Presidential Classroom Program in Washington D.C.
“Hundreds of students came from everywhere on earth,” Jeff said. “I was able to meet people from Asia, Europe and America. It was a new experience and I got to learn about new cultures.”
Cultural diversity wasn’t the only thing the South Korea native experienced in the nation’s capital. Throughout the week, Jeff attended lectures by notable figures such as Congressman Todd Akin and the first female commander of a space shuttle, Commander Eileen Collins. The CHS sophomore also had the opportunity to visit the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, the National Academy of Sciences, the Library of Congress, the US Supreme Court and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.
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Photo courtesy of Honeywell Hometown Solutions
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| Capitol Hill was just one of many sites that CHS sophomore Jeff Choi visited during his recent trip to Washington D.C. as part of the Honeywell Scholars @ Presidential Classroom Program. As part of the program from March 2-8, Jeff joined more than 400 other students that represent 31 countries and 31 U.S. states. |
The Honeywell Scholars @ Presidential Classroom Program is part of Honeywell Hometown Solutions, the corporate social responsibility initiative of Honeywell International. Students are selected based on an application and review process that takes into account academic achievement and community involvement.
Science, technology and public policy are the areas of focus within the program. As a result, the people that the students meet throughout the week are leaders within the 3 fields—with one goal of the program being to encourage students to consider careers in the respective fields.
“What better way to get the next generation to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math than to put them in touch with inspirational leaders in those fields,” said Tom Buckmaster, president of Honeywell Hometown Solutions. “The Honeywell Scholars @ Presidential Classroom program provides students with an engaging and intellectually stimulating experience to foster their passion for learning and advancement.”
Though Honeywell Hometown Solutions and Presidential Classroom are two distinct entities, their partnership has benefited students whose interests lie within the science, math, technology and engineering fields. Presidential Classroom is a nonprofit and nonpartisan 501(c)3 civic education program that has provided a unique educational experience to outstanding high school students for nearly 4 decades, using Washington D.C. as a classroom.
“Presidential Classroom’s partnership with Honeywell offers hundreds of students from around the world the opportunity to connect with scientists, scholars and policymakers who share their expertise and inspire the rising generation of leaders,” said Elizabeth Sherman, executive director of Presidential Classroom. “They leave with a greater understanding of the intersection of science, technology and public policy and how solutions to today’s problems can be addressed.”
One of the key projects during the week in Washington was a group project that had the 400-plus students split up into groups of 40, with each group working together on a project where they researched a specific topic. Stem cell research was the topic Jeff’s group tackled during the week and by the week’s end, the team gave a presentation that included PowerPoint slides and speeches from the different group members.
“This is a great honor for Jeff because it allowed him to experience and increase his knowledge of politics and government and, by being in Washington D.C., he was able to have a hands-on learning experience,” said CHS Principal Brett O’Connor.
“Hands-on” is a phrase that describes how Jeff is involved at CHS as the sophomore is a member of the school’s track team, the CHS Speech and Debate Team, the CHS Choir and the school’s Spanish Club. The Honeywell scholarship winner has attended CHS for one year, having attended schools in South Pasadena when he first moved to the US
Yet when Jeff first came to America two and half years ago, the 16-year-old found that he had to quickly adjust to an environment that was different than the one in his hometown of Sungnam, South Korea.
“I struggled my first year in America because of the language difference,” the CHS sophomore recalled. “And in California, I saw that there was a lot of diversity of races. In Asia, you see more of the same kind of people.”
Jeff appreciates the opportunities that he has had at Claremont High, both in and out of the classroom. Beyond CHS, the South Korea native, who is currently a permanent resident, is not only looking forward to becoming doctor or an astronaut but is also hoping to become a US citizen in the future—preferably by the time he graduates high school.
In the meantime, Jeff considers the week in Washington a memorable time and one that still plays a meaningful role in his life.
“Even though it was one week, it was one of the most remarkable weeks in my life,” he said. “I am still in communication with people that I met there and I will never forget that week.”
—Landus Rigsby
