South Side Student Engineers Her Dream Far From Home

CHICAGO, IL — Amy Wu's move to college in the Fall will seem like nothing compared to the move she made to attend Back of the Yards College Prep High School on Chicago's Southwest Side. Wu, 18, moved 7,800 miles from Zhuhai, China to the city's Brighton Park neighborhood three years ago to attend the public high school.

Wu graduated June 9 with a 3.95 grade-point average on a 4.0 scale and plans to attend the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She is the first student from the high school that opened in 2013 to be accepted into the university's engineering program.

"I'm looking forward to college because I know I'll be able to learn a lot," said Wu, who lived with her aunt and uncle while in high school. She left today to visit her parents in China for two months. Classes at the university begin Aug. 23.

While away, Wu volunteered to teach English to students in Thailand for two weeks. But Wu is no stranger to busy summers. She previously participated in a summer engineering program at the University of Notre Dame. She built robots, designed bridges and sat in lectures as part of this program. It's also where she began to dream of a career in engineering.

Wu had other help along the way too, first from the Pui Tak Center in Chicago's Chinatown neighborhood. This christian organization works with new immigrants to help them better assimilate to American culture. And it is also where Wu was introduced to Bottom Line Chicago.

This organization is dedicated to helping the city's public school students enroll and complete college. Bottom Line's full-time counselors focus on guiding low-income and first-generation students throughout the process. They help navigate financial aid as well as match aspiring students with colleges that align with their career goals.

"What impresses me most about Amy, outside of her academic achievements, is simply the determination and follow through she has had to succeed in engineering in college," said Wu's Bottom Line counselor Adam Lindemulder. "I know that this perseverance will continue to drive her to find a secure opportunities."

Wu said she is both excited and nervous for this next step toward her desired career. But her cousins also attended the University of Illinois, and their success helped win over her parents on the idea of continuing her education in Illinois.

"I'm looking forward to meeting new people," Wu said. "My high school is not as large as Urbana-Champaign for sure."

Photos provided by Amy Wu