Danielle Wong ’20, ThreeSixty Scholar ’16
Multimedia Strategic Communications Fellow, Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC
Danielle Wong ’20 has a skill set that’s indispensable. In a single day, she could have social media, event management, strategic communications, graphic design, photography and public relations on her to-do list at her job.
“It can be chaotic and stressful, but for me, I love fast-paced environments, I love working under pressure,” Wong explained, laughing. “I’ve always known that I need a job that allows me to do a million things at once.”
And she’s got the chops for it. Wong’s first major writing accolade came when she was just 13, besting college students in a state journalism contest. She contributed to a Peabody-winning podcast while interning at MPR News and was named a finalist for the Tommie Award her senior year.
Wong’s talents also earned her a fellowship with the Washington, D.C.,-based civil rights advocacy nonprofit Asian Americans Advancing Justice.
“Doing work specifically around my identities, as an Asian American, an Asian American woman, and a daughter of immigrants, is so important to me,” said Wong, who has Malaysian, Indonesian and Chinese ancestry. “Being able to do that work every single day and help my community in this way, it’s been really rewarding.”
Embracing and celebrating her identity has been a journey for Wong. When she had her first assignment for ThreeSixty Journalism, Wong wrote about the shame she experienced when classmates would make fun of her food and culture.
As she explored newspaper, radio, design and multimedia in the program and St. Thomas, her perspective as a member of the AAPI community was a common thread.
“Something that ThreeSixty has so deeply embedded and grounded in me is who I am and how I write and how I think about storytelling,” Wong said. “What I did carry with me always was knowing the power of my voice and knowing my voice, period, knowing who I was in my identities and how that enriched my perspective and made my work better.”
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