Jaklen Tuyen Memorial Scholarship

Awarded by the Georgia chapter of the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA)

The scholarship is awarded at OCA Georgia's Lunar Banquet. This event is usually held around Chinese New Year. The scholarship is for a Metro Atlanta high school female senior that is the most outstanding applicant in the areas of academics and community service. The scholarship is in the amount of $500.

Winners

2001: Mai-Lise Nguyen

Mai-Lise, a senior at Dunwoody High School, participates in a multitude of activities ranging from orchestra, to being a Girl Scout for eleven years, to Student Government. Moreover, she is deeply involved with her community. She organizes activities such as community-wide father/daughter Girl Scout sock hops and lock-ins for 4th and 5th grade girls that focus on character enhancement. She has volunteered with many organizations like Kingsley Charter School where she works with 3rd graders four times a week, the Georgia-to-Georgia Program, which sent 10,000 pairs of shoes to refugees in the Republic of Georgia, and the Refugee Women's Network where she helped create a national directory for battered women and children. Currently, Mai-Lise is working on her Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor in Girl Scouting, in which she volunteers with the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Greater Atlanta and North Georgia. Her Gold Award Project involves traveling to and giving speeches at different schools and organizations around Atlanta to raise awareness and involvement with the foundation. And though Mai-Lise is extremely committed to community service, she still makes time for academics. She is a monthly tutor for her peers, she is a member of both the National Beta Club and the National Honor Society, and she holds a GPA of 4.33.