FYI: our very own Shaowei Lin just placed #11 in the Putnam Competition (a nationwide math contest).
That’s right. By at least one measure, Shaowei is one of the 11 best college students at math in America.
I hear he’s available for tutoring. 
Thought everyone might be interested to know that Andrew was so incensed at the French stance on religious garb in schools that he wrote a letter to the editor which was published in the San Jose Mercury News and the Washington Post.
In case the links don’t work anymore, you can find the text on Andrew’s website.
While Shaowei Lin has had a website for quite a while, most other Chi Alphans have been slow to get online.
Andrew Wright has just launched a website: Andrew’s Pearls.
Another Chi Alphan online is Nathaniel Rice, who runs two sites: Randomness From Surfing and Occasional Forays Into Thought.
And one of our alumni, Jimmy Lim, is running You Always Sing the First Line of a Blues Song Twice.
Way to go, guys (all guys at this point–we need our ladies to get webby with it).
Hi, my name is Shaowei, and I am an international student from Singapore. Knowing the Lord has been the best thing that has ever happened in my whole life. My encounter with the Lord has been one that is full of excitement and joy, but it has not been an easy one.
It began when I gave my life over to Christ in July 2000. As a young Christian, I was often unsure of my faith, but I always had spiritual brothers and sisters encouraging me and giving me advice in my walk with Him. When I first came to Stanford in September 2002, I was worried because I heard rumors about how college life can be a stumbling block to one’s spiritual life, because of the heavy workload and because of the intellectualism that shakes one’s faith.
So I sought out several Christian fellowship groups, and the one that caught my attention was Chi Alpha. On our first day, the students and staff were extremely friendly to the newcomers. We had a wonderful time of worship, and Glen, the pastor, gave a very hilarious talk (I still remember he had his doctor’s gear on) that was also very deep and practical to college life. I fell in love with Chi Alpha because I saw how all the students truly loved God and truly loved each other.
Since then, all of us at Chi Alpha have been through thick and thin together. We shared our feelings, prayed for one another, lead worship, ate and had fun together, went for exciting retreats, and shared our faith with others. One way in which Chi Alpha really changed my life was when one of the pastors prayed for me at the Spring Retreat and I was delivered from the frequent nightmares which I had since I was five. Since then, I was able to sleep well and peacefully! Most importantly, Chi Alpha has taught me, both directly and indirectly, how much the Lord loves me, and how to love the Lord.
College life may be busy or intellectually intimidating, but we need to continue to put our trust and hope in the Lord so that He can show us how to live it purposefully. For Jesus said, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). I pray that you will find the fellowship group that the Lord has called you to soon. Take care and God Bless : )
Check it out: our very own Chi Alpha president, Luis Trujillo, is in the Stanford Daily for helping to construct a community center for abused teens, former prostitutes and others in Guatemala: Class designs facility for Guatemalan town.
A Stanford architecture class is playing a vital role in the construction of a community center and school in Amatitlan, Guatemala. Designing all aspects of the project — from dormitories to a church and retreat center — these students will show their work at a professional presentation to potential clients and contributors on Monday.
The Guatemalan facility will be a campus for the Center for the Restoration of Women and the Socially Disregarded, also referred to as the CEREM project, after the Christian organization sponsoring its development. The center will act as a residential center and school for homeless children and former prostitutes, as well as a church and place of retreat.
…
“One of the amazing things about CEREM is the people who started it,” said Luis Trujillo, another teaching assistant who is also acting as the client representative responsible for communicating the facility’s needs to student designers. “They have really challenged me to give all that I have. You don’t do this because you feel sorry for these people, but rather you do it out of love for them and the potential that you see in them.”
Luis has actually been a key player in this thing from start to finish. He’s got a marginal role in the article, but Luis is the guy who set the ball in motion, hooked CEREM up with the Stanford class, and has generally been pushing to make it happen!
Way to go, Luis! We’re proud of you: getting a Stanford class to design a Christian ministry center is an awesome way to leverage the gifts and opportunities God has given you.
UPDATE: there’s another article on the Stanford website that covers the project from a slightly different angle. It also gives Luis a little more prominence (well-deserved, I might add).
Hi–my name is Andrew Wright. As this is my first blog posting, I should tell you a little bit about myself. I’m a sophomore majoring in International Relations, and this year (2002) I’ll be a peer academic advisor for eight lucky freshmen in Rinconada!
Seeing that freshmen will be arriving on Thursday, I thought it appropriate that I throw out some tips for new students.
1) You won’t use half of what you bring! Most of those books you thought you’d bring to look smarter, will only collect dust. So will your 5 extra bath towels, 3 heavy jackets, and possibly even your stereo system (should you decide to pirate music on your computer). School supplies can be bought at fair prices from the bookstore. Not only do you have student discount, freshmen are entitled to an even larger discount on certain important items. Not only are they cheap, but that have “Stanford” written all over them (literally)!
2) Present yourself as you truly are! Over-exuberance or first-week acts of folly can quickly lead to a reputation or expectations that you may find hard to live up to. Remember, you have to live with your dormmates for an entire year, so be yourself and you’ll have nothing to regret.
3) The patterns you set now will determine who you become. Don’t neglect your devotional life because the more time that goes by, the easier it will be for you to shrug it off. As Glen once said, “We’re defined by our habits, so choose yours carefully.”
4) Search thoroughly, but plug into a Christian group quickly. Immediately you’re going to be bombarded with tons of different philosophies, and if you don’t have a group to help you explore and reinforce your own you’ll be one confused freshman! Also, friendships and bonds within the group tend to form quickly. And the longer you wait to join a group, the greater the chance you’ll feel awkward when you visit the group.
If you have any questions or contrary opinions, just make a comment below.
