The Silicon Valley Taiwanese American Industrial Technology Association (TAITA-SV) held its 21st annual meeting on October 19, where seven students were awarded scholarships. At the event, these students showcased their winning proposals through displays, explaining their innovative ideas.
Luc Yu, the president of TAITA-SV, noted that this year’s scholarship presentation differed from previous years. The organization aims to provide students with more exposure and connect them with the Taiwanese and American industries.
Among the scholarship recipients, three high school students and four college students were recognized. Among them, Taiwanese-American high school student An-Yu Wang received the TAITA-SV high school scholarship for providing remote online English tutoring to elementary schools in rural Taiwan. An-Yu expressed her passion for education, stating that through this online teaching method, she is able to offer learning opportunities to children in underserved areas. Having only moved to the Bay Area a year ago from Taiwan, she shared, “Taiwan will always be home to me.”
An-Yu’s mother, Hsiao-Ching Kuo, expressed gratitude to the organizers for their efforts in setting up the scholarship program and voiced pride in her daughter’s achievement. Adjusting to life in the Bay Area has been a significant change for An-Yu, but she credits the resilience fostered by her education in Taiwan for helping her persevere through challenges. “Not giving up easily is part of the Taiwanese spirit,” she added.
Ethan Chang, who grew up in the Bay Area with Taiwanese parents and is currently a sophomore in Computer Science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, was awarded a scholarship for his proposal to use adversarial models to address the inaccuracies generated by large language models (LLMs). His approach optimizes responses by having the system operate from two conflicting perspectives.
Initially, Ethan applied for the scholarship mainly to enhance his credentials. However, upon arriving at the event, he found himself inspired by the influential figures from the tech industry and academia he encountered there. He encouraged other aspiring scholarship applicants to pursue their dreams with passion and dedication, as that zeal can make them stand out.
Other recipients included Milpitas High School student Jason Yang, Livermore High School student Joseph Eng, Lebanese-American De Anza College student Brian Sawaya, and University of California students Rachel Yen and Joe Lin.
