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About Us

About Us

Helping youth and families succeed in school, at work, and in life

Our Mission

Asian Youth Center's mission is to empower low-income, immigrant, and at-risk youth, of all communities, to overcome barriers to success through the provision of culturally and linguistically competent education, employment, and social services.

Programs

Asian Youth Center (AYC) provides low-income, immigrant, and at-risk youth with free or low-cost social services in Los Angeles, San Gabriel Valley, and Antelope Valley.

Education and Enrichment Services

Supporting students, parents & community members.

Community Outreach and Engagement

Providing resources for community members.

Youth & Family Services

Empowering youth and their families.

Emergency Food Program

Providing critical food and pantry staples.

Our Leadership

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Elizabeth Yang

President
Bio
Profile Pic_Kenny Chung

Kenny Chung

First Vice President
Bio
Sabrina Li

Sabrina Li

Second Vice President
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Steve Maekawa

Treasurer

Carol Lee

Secretary
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Our Team

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Michelle Freridge

Executive Director
Bio
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Christine Najung Lee

Deputy Director
Bio
01 Finley J 6563

Jerica Finley Orozco

Director of Contract Compliance
Bio
Diana Chung Headshot_AYC

Diana Chung

Director of Programs, Clinical Supervisor
Bio
MImi

Mimilanie Balino

Fiscal Director
Bio
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History

  • 1989: Asian Youth Project was established by the Asian Task Force of the United Way. Its founding members included May L. To and Judy Chu, before she was the first Chinese-American woman elected to Congress.
  • 1990: Asian Youth Project becomes a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and is renamed the Asian Youth Center (AYC). 
  • 1996: AYC wins an At-Risk Youth Competitive Grant from the Open Space District, allowing the agency to acquire and develop its headquarters in San Gabriel, CA.
  • 2009: Asian Youth Center started services in the Antelope Valley.
  • 2020: Emergency Food Program expands to fit the increased needs of the COVID-19 Pandemic.
  • 2021: Asian Youth Center was named a California Non Profit of the Year by Senator Susan Rubio.
  • 2022: Asian Youth Center opened new Antelope Valley building to support programs and services.
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Ways to Give

Partnerships

Support our mission through your business or organization.

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Donations help low-income and immigrant community members.

Volunteer

Contribute your time and expertise to our mission.

Wishlist

Gift items directly from our Amazon Wishlist.

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Annual Reports

Elizabeth Yang
First Vice President
​Elizabeth Yang, owner and founder of the Law & Mediation Offices of Elizabeth Yang, has over a decade of legal experience and is recognized by Thomson Reuters as a “Super Lawyer.” Her firm specializes in Family Law, Business Law, Intellectual Property law (patents, trademarks, copyrights), and Estate Planning and has offices in Los Angeles, Irvine, Monterey Park, Beverly Hills and Taipei. At the age of 19, Elizabeth earned her B.S. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from UC Berkeley in 2.5 years. She then earned her JD/MBA from the University of La Verne as well as her Mediation Certification with the Los Angeles County Bar Association (LACBA).
Prior to practicing law, she worked for Raytheon as a radar designer for the B2 Bomber and at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab on the Mars Exploration Rover. In 2017, Elizabeth published “The Big Secret” alongside Jack Canfield, author of the “Chicken Soup for the Soul” series and it became a best-selling novel within the first week. Since then, she has also published 4 other books: “Stress-Free Divorce” (2018), “The Authorities: Powerful Wisdom from Leaders in the Field” (2020), “Women in the Modern Business World: A Blueprint on how to Lead Yourself to a Better Life” (2020), and “Asian Women Who BossUp” (2021). She is fluent in Mandarin Chinese and currently resides in Monterey Park with her husband and two children.
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Kenny Chung
Secretary

Kenny Chung is the Executive Vice-President for Commercial Real Estate at Hong Kong Realty Management, Inc. He has extensive experience investing in and managing multiple types of real property such as retail, industrial, multi-family, and office. In addition to being a real estate attorney, Kenny is also a licensed California Realtor and holds the CCIM (Certified Commercial Investment Member) and SFR (Short Sales and Foreclosure Resource) designations. He also serves on the Board of Directors for the Southern California Chinese Lawyers Association and the Rosemead Chamber of Commerce.

Kenny earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of California at Berkeley, a master’s degree from Harvard University, and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California at Los Angeles. While at UCLA Law, he studied abroad at the Peking University Law School in Beijing, China. He is fluent in Mandarin and Cantonese.

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Michelle L. Freridge
M.P.A., J.D., Executive Director
Michelle Freridge joined AYC as the Development Director in 2002, became the Program Director in 2007, and was tapped to be the Executive Director in 2012. She completed a B.A. at Michigan State University and a Master’s Degree in Public Administration at Western Michigan University before moving to Southern California in 1999.
After more than 20 years of direct service, development, and management work in the non-profit sector, she attended Loyola Law School’s evening program and was admitted to the California Bar in 2011.  Ms. Freridge is an Adjunct Professor at University of the West, where she teaches MBA classes with a non-profit focus.
Michelle sits on the Board of the Rosemead Kiwanis Foundation, the San Gabriel Valley Bar Association, and the Pasadena Community College President’s Asian American & Pacific Islander Advisory Committee. Ms. Freridge is deeply committed to empowering youth to succeed in life.
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Christine Najung Lee
Deputy Director
Christine Najung Lee at AYC, providing day-to-day management and supervision to all AYC programs and operations. Prior to joining AYC, she was at the Asian Pacific Community Fund for 8 years in a variety of roles as Program Manager, Development Manager, and Marketing Manager. Christine was primarily in charge of its nonprofit sector capacity building programs, grants management, volunteer program, grant writing, and resource development, as well as communications, marketing strategies, event planning, and media relations. In addition to her background in philanthropy, she brings over a decade of experience in the AAPI nonprofit field, having served at various Los Angeles-based organizations, including the Koreatown Youth and Community Center, Little Tokyo Service Center, Asian & Pacific Islander Older Adults Task Force, NAKASEC, and a community health clinic in Koreatown.
Christine’s areas of expertise include public health, community outreach, cultural competency, youth leadership development, and community organizing. She is currently on the board for The K.W. Lee Center for Leadership and was on the Adventist Health White Memorial Community Leadership Council, Steering Committee of Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders In Philanthropy-Los Angeles, and formerly elected to serve on the Wilshire Center-Koreatown Neighborhood Council. Christine holds a Master of Social Welfare (MSW) as well as a bachelor’s degree in English and Asian American Studies from UCLA.
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Jerica Finley
Director of Contract Compliance and Evaluation and Learning
Jerica Finley is AYC’s current Director of Contract Compliance, Evaluation & Learning. She is responsible for the direct supervision of a portfolio of programs. She supports all programs and services for program design, program evaluation, data collection, data analysis, contract compliance, quality control, and continuous quality improvement.
Jerica has a passion for impacting lives and leaving an indelible impression. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Criminal Justice in 2016; while working on her degree, she realized that many low-income youth and families do not navigate readily available resources. She became passionate about changing the inequities and suffering she saw in the community.
Upon completion, she received an opportunity to work at AYC. She first began working as a caseworker and got involved with the evaluation and data analysis. Eventually, she had a chance to make a more significant impact by managing programs; and learned a lot regarding implementation and evaluation. Upon, managing programs she was inspired to obtain her Master’s in Public Administration in August 2021, and at this point, she has become the Director of Contract Compliance and Evaluation. She is excited to utilize all the skills and knowledge she has received over the years to make a more significant impact on youth and families.
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Diana Chung
Director of Programs, Clinical Supervisor​

Diana is a family therapist (MFT) by discipline, which has been the vehicle through which she has carried out her work in community-building across health centers and schools in San Diego and Los Angeles. Her focus is on supporting communities for whom race, language, and culture are essential to living full and connected lives.

She is a second-generation Chinese American from the San Gabriel Valley with a deep interest in the languages and lived experiences of those around her. Diana works professionally in English and Spanish, having earned an M.A. in Hispanic Studies abroad, and has been using more Chinese than ever since joining AYC.

Outside of her professional work, she stays connected to her community through gardening, dance, and volunteering with youth.

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Mimilanie Balino
Fiscal Director

As Fiscal Director at Asian Youth Center, Mimilanie Balino provides direction to the Fiscal Department of AYC, including supervision of fiscal and human resources office staff to ensure accurate and timely performance of all accounting, fiscal and HR reporting, auditing, payroll, and other financial functions.

Mimilanie has over fifteen years of experience in accounting, including the last ten years at AYC. Working at AYC gives her a strong sense of commitment and satisfaction, as she supports the organization’s mission by ensuring its financial health is well monitored and HR compliance remains up to date.

Mimilanie began her career at AYC as an Accounting Clerk and was promoted to Staff Accountant, Senior Accountant, Fiscal Manager, and ultimately Fiscal Director. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Business Management, major in Banking and Finance, from the University of the East (Philippines), and has completed extensive continuing education coursework in accounting through UCLA Extension.

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