“As the only adoptee on the board, Kate recognizes how pivotal this time is; she views it as a transition where many adoptees are becoming more aware of their own identities and an opportunity to make the organization more adoptee focused.”
Kate graduated a few years ago from the University of Texas Austin with a degree in Interior Design. Having grown up enjoying art classes through middle and high school, Kate wanted to pursue a field that was hands-on and allowed for the potential to work on creative projects. Fittingly so, since graduating, she has also been able to maintain many of her creative passions.
Kate has been a dancer since she was 2: from studio classes to her high school drill team, today, Kate is a “shuffler” and frequently posts shuffle videos on Instagram. In fact, while she grew up in relatively diverse cities, dance was one of the ways Kate was also able to connect with Chinese culture. She spent 12 years in traditional Chinese dance and was even able to meet other Chinese adoptees.
However, it was not until college that she considered her identity as an adoptee more seriously. In spite of UT’s large Asian population, Kate didn’t necessarily fit in. While not uncommon for many adoptees to experience, the estrangement between adoptees and the Asian community became more apparent, and it was awkward to realize that in some ways “there’s a boundary you can’t cross into their community.” Put simply, being “too Asian for the white community and too white for the Asian community is a difficult thing to balance.” Nevertheless, during COVID, Kate was able to reconnect with the Asian and adoptee community. She reconnected with her local Families with Children from China (FCC) chapter and now serves on the board. As the only adoptee on the board, Kate recognizes how pivotal this time is; she views it as a transition where many adoptees are becoming more aware of their own identities and an opportunity to make the organization more adoptee focused.
When she’s not volunteering, you can find Kate at an EDM rave, shuffling, or enjoying some of the best tacos and BBQ Texas has to offer.
Humans of CCI profiled on Facebook in 2023.