2007 ALC Session 2 Staff Bios

Hello everyone! Thank you for your interest in our American Language and Culture (ALC) Program. I was an ALC participant myself in 1991 and am excited to be involved again, this time as the Program Director. My participation in ALC not only enabled me to learn about the diverse culture of the United States, but it also broadened my perspective about Asia, including my home country Japan. The program also enabled me to develop life-long lasting friendship. I hope your participation in our program will also give you an opportunity to change the way you view the world and also develop friendship which you can treasure for life.

Outside of work, I am currently a doctoral candidate at the University of Hawaii majoring in Japanese language teaching. In my spare time I like to listen to music, watch movies and travel. The staff and the Fellow Stanford Hosts are planning an exciting summer for you and we are looking forward to seeing you this summer at Stanford!

Hi, my name is Raphaël Lambert. I am a native of France and I teach American literature and film studies at the University of Tsukuba, Japan. I am specialized in African American culture and will organize a couple film screenings related to that field. The VIA program is a life growing experience and you will love every bit of it. You will find that VIA is addictive. In fact, this is my third participation in the program. I am looking forward to meeting you all!

Adam Toda: Senior Claude Buss Fellow/Stanford Host (adam.toda@gmail.com)

Hello everyone! My name is Adam Toda, and I actually recentlygraduated from Stanford in December of 2006 with a major in SymbolicSystems and a concentration in Human Computer Interaction. Iparticipated in the ALC 2 program last year as a host, and I had suchan amazing experience that I wanted to return and help out with the program this year as a senior host. You should be excited to be apart of this program!  You're going to have a fantastic summer!I enjoy all sorts of activities, including basketball, drawing,juggling, snowboarding, dancing, beat-boxing, playing video games, andriding-roller coasters just to name a few. One of my favoriteactivities, however, is performing the contemporary Japanese ensembledrumming known as taiko. I was a part of the Stanford Taiko group- astudent-run performance group on campus- during my four years atStanford, and I've practiced and performed taiko since I was six yearsold! I'm actually trying to pursue taiko as a career, and I'm now ona fellowship to study taiko from a well-known taiko master in Hawaii.I've had the pleasure of studying abroad in Japan for six months inKyoto and Tokyo, so I know what it's like to live in a new place withdifferent cultural practices and a completely different language. As difficult as it may seem to overcome these barriers, I definitelyconsider studying abroad one of my most memorable and rewardingexperiences.  I hope I can make your time here as enjoyable andmemorable as my time was in Japan! I look forward to meeting you andgetting to know you this summer!

Nadina Anderson: Claude Buss Fellow/Stanford Host (nadina@stanford.edu)

Hello!  My name is Nadina Anderson and I am a rising sophomore here atStanford. I am from Tucson, AZ, so I love the new California climateand greenery. My major so far has been undecided, but I amconsidering International Relations or Psychology.

My interestsinclude singing, reading, eating, and sleeping. I participate in thea cappella scene on campus in Stanford’s only all-female a cappellagroup Counterpoint.  In high school I enjoyed activities such as swimteam and Model UN. I have never been to Asia or really been exposedto Asian culture so I am very excited about gaining new experiencesand having a great time this summer.

Anh Doan: Claude Buss Fellow/Stanford Host (anhdoan@stanford.edu)

My name is Anh Doan and I am a rising sophomore at Stanford University. I am still exploring majors, and am particularly interested in economics and public policy. I was born in Vietnam and immigrated to the United States when I was two. I grew up in Southern California and I love going to the beach, swimming, and other water-related activities. Meeting new people, going to new places, and doing new things are the spices of my life. I play tennis occasionally, read good novels when I can and silly magazines when I shouldn't, and listen to music a lot.

This past year I worked as an intern at the Asian Liver Center at Stanford University, where I had the chance to educate the public about the high rate of hepatitis B among Asians. Laughing is one of my favorite pastimes, and so is learning. I consider life to be an adventure, and I hope we all have a great journey together this summer.

Alessandro Gonzalez: Claude Buss Fellow/Stanford Host (alexgonz@stanford.edu)

Hello all! I'm very excited about meeting all of you and I know we will all have a great experience this summer! I'm a first year graduate student in Electrical Engineering concentrating on Control Systems and Signal Processing. It's a great field and we've done projects from making real time GPS displays to creating movies through image processing in MATLAB!

As for my personal interests, I'm really interested in anything related to Asian cultures. Being half Nicaraguan and half Chinese has made my life interesting since I get to meet and connect with people from a Latino background as well as an Asian background. I've lived for many years in the U.S. as well as Nicaragua so I've gotten to experience their cultures thoroughly! I really enjoy traveling, reading, and listening to all kinds of music but recently I've been hooked to some great Chinese music! Whenever I can, I try to squeeze in time to learning some great piano pieces from Nobuo Uematsu. I can't wait to meet everyone and I know we'll all have an excellent time together this summer!

Ryoko Nishijima : Claude Buss Fellow/Stanford Host (rnishijima@stanford.edu)

Hi all! My name is Ryoko Nishijima, and I am currently a junior double majoring in Anthropology and Film Studies at Stanford. As you can see from my majors, I love people watching and movie watching (let me know if you like movies too, and we’ll have a huge movie-talk session!!). Born and raised in Fukuoka, Japan, I came to the U.S. after graduating high school there. In my freshman year I began studying Mandarin, and through my study I have become obsessed with Jay Chou and Wang Leehom (and other hot Taiwanese pop stars…hehe). This obsession furthered my motivation for learning the language, and I spent the summer and fall of 2006 in Beijing studying Chinese / Chinese culture / traveling around China. During the spring break of 2007 I went to Taiwan for a week, and completely fell in love with the beautiful Formosa J.

In my spare times, I enjoy…youtube, facebook, MSN (online 24/7), Mixi…leading a very…uh…unhealthy “Otaku” life. Apart from that, I enjoy playing the piano, meeting people from different countries, and filming / editing video – hopefully I can make a memorial video of the program so you guys can remember this event forever. I’m super excited about getting to know all of you this summer!

Thanh Tran: Claude Buss Fellow/Stanford Host (tran10@stanford.edu)

Howdy! My name is Thanh Tran and I will be entering my junior year in the fall with a major in Anthropological Sciences. My home is in Southern California but I love Stanford just as much. In the coming weeks, I hope you will come to love it too!

I like to play tennis, run barefoot in the grass and frolic in the sun. Happiness to me is a platter of fresh fruit on a hot day. All play aside, I hope to become a doctor in the future and practice medicine internationally. I love to travel and learn about other cultures. Hopefully I will be able to discover as much about you as you will about America in this program. Until we meet in August, take care and I'm excited to see you!

Brian Wang: Claude Buss Fellow/Stanford Host (brianwang@stanford.edu)

Hey all! My name is Brian Wang and I’m really excited about meeting all of you this summer during the ALC Program! I am a rising sophomore here at Stanford who is interested in a major in Electrical Engineering, but my interests also lie in a variety of on-campus groups and activities, such as intramural sports, quizbowl, and mentoring.

In addition, I enjoy reading fiction and non-fiction in my spare time, and my favorite authors include Michael Crichton, George Orwell, and John Stuart Mill. Moreover, I’m somewhat of a sports enthusiast and a huge Chelsea FC fan (Go Blues!). Music has also occupied a great deal of my life, as I have been playing violin for a number of years and can appreciate nearly every genre. When I’m not indoors reading, watching movies, listening to music, or playing video games I can be found outside hanging out with friends, volunteering, playing violin, hiking, camping, and creating general mischief. I look forward to meeting all of you this summer in ALC2!

David Wells: Claude Buss Fellow/Stanford Host (david935@stanford.edu)

Hello! My name is David Wells and I'm a senior studying Mechanical Engineering. I'm very interested in airplanes, satellites, submarines, and other cool cutting edge and expensive technology. I love sports, especially baseball and American football, and did both extensively in high school. I also love music, and have been involved with a student group called Stanford Taiko since my freshman year. With the group, I've traveled and performed in Thailand, as well as briefly visited Japan. I speak some Japanese, and hope to eventually live in Japan for a while and study taiko there.

I've heard amazing things about the ALC program and can't wait to meet everyone. I'm looking forward to having an amazing experience with all of you!