Welcoming our new Writers' Room Manager, Annie Chen!

Photographed: Writers’ Room Manager Annie Chen, with beloved dog Ziggy.

As we welcome the 22’-23’ school year, we spoke with our new Writers’ Room Manager, Annie Chen, to welcome her to our team! The Writers’ Room is open to South High School students on September 19th.

Tell us a little bit about yourself!

My name’s Annie, I recently graduated from Augsburg University with my Master of Arts in Education. My undergraduate degree was completed at the University of Minnesota, where I studied Asian Languages and Literature. For a while, I worked at Augsburg University with their TRIO Program, which focuses on outreach and educational advancement for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Prior to that, I worked at YWCA with some of their programming for middle schoolers. I have a dog that I really love- his name is Ziggy! I do a lot of fiber arts; knitting, sewing, quilting. Most recently, I picked up resin art as a pandemic hobby. 

How did you learn about the 826 job opening? What drew you to the Writers' Room? 

I had actually learned of 826 MSP through a knitting circle that I was in! I saw the job posting independently, from a local job board focused on BIPOC individuals. It was such a nice surprise to see it, and to have a friendly association with the organization. As the interview process continued, I realized how aligned I was with the mission of the organization and of the programming involved. 

I really enjoy working with high-school students, so the Writers’ Room was very appealing to me.  Middle school and high school are some of my favorite groups to work with. At those ages, students are really starting to come into themselves as individuals, and it’s fun and encouraging to do that work and see those developments. I was really excited to find an opportunity that would involve such rewarding work, while being able to engage with a small non-profit. The size of the organization was really important to me as well, after coming from such a large higher education organization. 

Is there anything in particular that you are looking forward to this school year?

There is a lot that I am learning as we are preparing with Open Houses, but the first week has been really encouraging. The Writers’ Room council has stopped by and it’s been great to be introduced to some of those faces. I really appreciate the sense of community that has been built here, and am looking forward to learning my place in this environment that has been prominently established. To foster that and build this space has been really exciting, even in these initial days. To already have that working relationship, and to already have students that are so obviously excited to be here has been so encouraging and rewarding. I am looking forward to finding a part of this space, and to foster those pre-existing connections. This place is obviously so special to the students. I had one student come in already and tell me, “You can expect to see a lot of me this year!” I’ve had a student who came in and identified his favorite place to sit in the room itself. The students are so excited to come back, and I’m thrilled to get to engage with this room and all that it brings. 

How do you think your experiences have prepared you for this role?

One of the things that really drew me to working with TRIO was that I myself was a first-generation college student. Working with populations similar to me and my family has always been such a passionate piece in my personal and professional trajectory. We’ve got a College Essay Writing Workshop coming up, and I am feeling really prepared and passionate to manage projects like that. I graduated from my master’s program in May. This was a newly established program which had a very socio-political focus on education and equity. Being so fresh out of a degree with that kind of context, I am really looking forward to seeing some of those translations into a genuine, every-day practice. 

One of my greatest motivations was my grandmother. I have such a great amount of love and adoration for her. She was illiterate, and I have been thinking a lot about that two-generation jump in my family. To be the first person to attend college, and then to receive a master’s degree, was really impactful for me and my work in education.

Is there anything that you’d like to say to our community?

I think at this stage I would just like to emphasize that I truly am so excited to be here! I’m so excited to learn more about the process and the community. I think that this school year has such a strong start already, and the Writers’ Room is just about to open with a lot of that positive energy.