As director of community development of the Dallas County Community College District (DCCCD), Dr. Julia Wai-Yin So is responsible for promoting DCCCD in the Asian community, facilitating Asian support for DCCCD projects and programs, and identifying and meeting community needs with respect to educational opportunities and workforce development.  

Julia is…

• the 2007 Chairman of the board of the Greater Dallas Asian American Chamber of Commerce
• the current President of the North Texas Advisory Board of the Texas Diversity Council
• a result-oriented & student-focused college administrator that had effectively managed a $30-million privately-funded scholarship program
• a past adjunct professor at Richland College, the University of Texas at Arlington & the University of Texas at Dallas
• a community consultant for the National Diversity Council and institutional consultant in issues relating to Asian Americans
• a native of Hong Kong that has over 30 years of oversea residence (in Ecuador, Japan and Hong Kong) and international travels (to three continents)
• multilingual in three Chinese dialects–Mandarin, Cantonese & Chao-Zhou-Hua--English, Spanish and some Japanese
• a past Vice President of the Organization of Chinese Americans—DFW Chapter
• a past Vice President of the Multi-ethnic Education and Economic Development Center
• a regular contributing columnist for Texas Herald, Connections and the American Diversity Report
• a past national board secretary of the Asian Pacific Americans in Higher Education
• a compassionate community leader who has raised thousands of dollars for scholarship to benefit college students and for non-profit organizations to host educational programs in the community
• a graduate of Leadership Dallas, Leadership America, & FBI Citizen Academy
• a graduate of the University of Texas at Arlington (B.A. & M.A. in Sociology) and the University of Texas at Dallas (Ph.D. in Public Policy & Political Economy)

With decades of experience working with people from diverse cultures and backgrounds, Dr. So is tireless in her efforts to bridge community groups by conducting workshops on communication, leadership and Asian cultures.  Many of these workshops offer insights to non-Asians about approaching Asians/Asian-Americans and dispelling some of the common misperceptions that one has about these groups.  Over the years, Dr. So was recognized numerous times for her community service.  The most recent one is the National Institutional Excellence Award from the National Organization of Chinese Americans.