Certified and Recognized by Elected Officials
Youth4AM is recognized by elected officials representing New York City and New York State. They have attended Youth4AM’s graduation ceremonies in previous years, offering congratulations and words of advice. Thank you for your continuous support!
New York State
”I hope that you guys make the most of this opportunity… I wanted to be here to thank all of our volunteers for the tremendous service that you are doing for our city, for the Asian American community, and for our future leaders. I know that you could be easily doing other things that might seem more fun, but you’ve decided to dedicate your time and energy to this very noble cause to make sure that every student here in New York City has an equal opportunity as others to attend the best schools here in the city.”
“It is really a privilege for me, what I considered my biggest perks of office, to be able to congratulate all of our young graduates of this program and to say thank you in advance. The leadership training that you have gone through already, the website that you have developed not only for this association but really for the entire community. You should be very proud of it, but see it only as a beginning of your continued work for the community.”
“I appreciate you putting the program together and I do want to congratulate the students who completed the preparation program for the SHSAT. It seems to me that we would need more of these programs. I was very impressed with the presentations by the students because I understand that part of your summer program deals with debate and public speaking. “
“There is just no better substitute for guaranteed success in life and pursuing academic excellence. That is exactly what you are all doing here and that is exactly why you are all enrolled in this program and why you dedicate your summers to want to pursue that. But just as important as pursuing academic excellence, is also remembering to give back to the community. I wish you all much continued success into the future and know that my office is always here to be a resource, a guide, and a source of mentorship for any one of you who needs.”
“It gives me great confidence knowing that young leaders like yourself will be taking over leadership positions in our community. One piece of advice that I’ve always found helpful that I want to share with you is don’t think that any goal or anything is too much to achieve. I encourage you to push forward and remember many people fail because they don’t try. So once again, I want to congratulate all the campers today and we look forward to watching you grow and your future and success and becoming leaders in our community in the future.”
“The one thing I would like to say to young people is never be afraid that you are going to be different. It is not wrong, each one needs to be their own person. Each one needs to be different in their own ways that allows them to be successful and allow them to reach their full potential. Congratulations to all of you. Your community is very proud of what you do. Keep on doing it, be successful, and when you do that you will know that whatever hard work and sacrifices that were involved, it’s worth it in the long end.”
New York State Representative Lester Chang
New York City
“You are young scholars that will be future leaders, not only the leaders of tomorrow but you are the leaders of today. And let me say this to you. Particularly those of you of Chinese descent and part of this American experience. I have never been more proud of an ethnic group or cultural group in this city than I have been of the men and women of the Chinese community.”
“Hi, my name is Linda Lee, City Councilmember for the 23rd district out here in eastern Queens. I just wanted to congratulate you and … to thank Youth4AM. We need more of these programs for sure. And as an Asian American myself, I take great pride in being celebrated and recognized. So thank you so much Youth4AM for having this youth program, and we continue to look forward to hearing your successes. Thank you so much.”
“I know that a part of your program is to talk about civic engagement and I think that is so important as you are going forward in your career, and I know all of you guys will do great… So as you go on your careers… I hope you will always remember the community you come from…the local community that supported you, to always think about ways you can give back… whether that be running for office, joining your community board, or joining a civic organization. Or simply helping out your fellow Asian Americans.”
New York City Ex-Comptroller Scott M. Stringer
New York City Ex-Council Member Peter Koo
“I want to thank the leadership for New York Residents Alliance, for this very good program, to help our young teens in education and in learning civic things. I want to thank the leadership for helping our youngsters prepare for a better future. Another thing I want to express is don’t forget we are Asian Americans. To distinguish us from other Americans, even though we are a big part, we still have to maintain our traditions and cultures. We have to unite together to have strength.”
New York City Ex-Council Member Barry S. Grodenchik
“I want you to be able to stretch yourselves out, to be willing to take chances, and to be willing to fail because as I say in most graduations, nobody, and I mean nobody, goes through life undefeated. My father, who is gone from my life for over 20 yrs now, used to say when life hands you a lemon, you make lemonade, and that no situation is bad unless we allow it to become bad. So my message for you today is to seek excellence, not to be afraid to fail, and that nothing good just drops into your lap.”
New York City Office of Council Member Susan Zhuang
