Alan Hing Ying Woo

Alan Hing-Ying Woo is a long-time community activist who advocates for the poor and disenfranchised. He is also a successful entrepreneur and businessmen. For most of his life, he has worked to empower the disabled and ethnic minority group and fought for social and economic justice. Mr. Woo was born in Toisan, China and immigrated to the United States in the 1950’s. Mr. Woo grew up in South Central Los Angeles near the Crenshaw District and attended Manual Arts High School in the 1960’s. He saw first hand how inadequate education, limited opportunities, social injustice and racial disparities resulted in disenfranchised Americans venting their frustration during the civil unrest in 1964. In 1967, he was given an opportunity like many underprivileged Americans through the Equal Opportunity Act to obtain a full scholarship to a liberal arts college in Colorado that transformed his life. It was at Colorado College that he led the anti-war movement and student rights movement. Living among the many trust fund babies, he learned that to be truly free it is not enough to merely have a good job but you need to understand the economics of power and authority. He learned that economic justice and self-sufficiency does not merely in government hand-outs but by the ability to control the decisions that impact your community. He has pursued correcting disparities ever since.

Mr. Woo holds a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts from Colorado College and a Masters in Public Administration from California State University at Long Beach.

Mr. Alan H. Woo is currently the Director of Planning and Program Development for the Community Action Partnership of orange County (The Partnership). The Partnership is one of the oldest and largest nonprofit organization in Orange County. Founded over 42 years ago, the Partnership is the County’s only designated community action agency whose mission is to alleviate poverty and its root causes. These efforts have resulted in Community Technology Partnership, Community Mentor Partnership, Asian Pacific Healthy Elders Project, Senior Medi-Cal Outreach, Earned Income Tax Credit Coalition, Motel Families Coalition, Orange County Communities Organized for Responsible Development, Santa Ana Homeless Task Force, Family Resource Centers and First Things First of Orange County (Medi-Cal Outreach project to uninsured low-income families).

Mr. Woo was appointed member by the State legislature and Chaired the California Public Utilities Commission Low Income Oversight Board representing the Asian and Pacific Islander Low-Income communities.

He is currently the President of the Asian Pacific Planning Council of Orange County that advocates for policies that build stronger communities by removing barriers and empowering the poor and disenfranchised to move towards self-sufficiency.

Mr. Woo has over 30 years in executive management of such diverse nonprofit organizations as Inglewood Neighborhood Housing Services, Santa Ana Neighborhood Organization, Asian Rehabilitation Services, United Cambodian Community, Asian Pacific Community Services and United Way.
He was appointed six consecutive terms to the Orange County Drug and Alcohol Advisory Board and served on the Ethnic Advisory Council for the State Department of Developmental Services and Department of Rehabilitation.

Alan was a founding board member and Vice President for the Democratic Associates of Orange County.

In Colorado, he was the CEO of an entertainment company that created hospitality ventures in several states, ski resorts and radio stations.

In his community life, Mr. Woo is the founding President of the Asian Pacific Community Fund, founding board member for the Orange County Asian Pacific Islander Community Alliance and former Secretary, founding board member of Orange County Presidents Council, and a memebr of the Black Chamber of Orange County Advisory Board where he currently holds the position of Chair of the Public Policy Committee. He serves as a board member for the Affordable Housing Clearinghouse of Orange County and currently the President of the Asian Pacific Policy and Planning Council of Orange County. He is a member of the Kennedy Commission, Orange County Immigrants Rights Alliance, and Orange County Communities Organized for Responsible Development. He has served as Vice President on the board of directors for the Volunteer Center of Los Angeles.

Over the years, Mr. Woo has received many honors and recognition, among which are:
• He was honored by United Way and Stone Soup Child Care for creating a successful model for collaborative partnerships to provide innovative low cost school age child care in partnership with schools.
• He received Congressional recognition for his work with Santa Ana Neighborhood Organization as Executive Director.
• He was recognized by the City of Santa Ana for his work on the All-American City Committee.
• In May, 2008, he honored and recognized by the City of Santa Ana with the Community Builders Award for his work on behalf of the poor and disenfranchised.
• Mr. Woo has published papers on Empowering the Asian Pacific Disability Community and employing the disabled. He was appointed to serve on the People with Disabilities Advisory Board at Howard University
• He was recognized by the County of Orange for his work on the Drug and Alcohol Advisory Board.
• In 2005, he was honored and recognized by the Asian Business Association of Orange County with the Community Leadership Award for his outstanding work and advocacy for low-income and minority communities.
• In 2004, he was honored by the City of Santa Ana for his work at the Community action Partnership of Orange County for his work on behalf of helping homeless motel families.
• He has received numerous honors and recognition from the State Assembly, State Senate and Congressional recognition for his work in the Asian pacific community.
• He is the proud recipient of the Helen Twelvetrees Film Festival Award for Best Student Film for “Flying”, a film about boys who wanted to soar like birds which was a riveting allegory for man’s pursue for freedom.
• He has been honor by the City of Long Beach and United Cambodian Communities for his work and advocacy on behalf of the Cambodian community in Long Beach where he developed a 12-unit low-income housing project in Long Beach, oversaw the implementation of a three-year grant to use cultural arts to implement community development strategies, and expand youth enrichment programs aimed at reducing teen pregnancy and improving education outcomes.
• He was recognized by At Asian Rehabilitation Services for turning around an organization on the verge of closing and built it into a major nationally recognized employment training and development services for persons with disabilities in the Asian Pacific Community; obtaining the first federal contract that employed minority persons with disabilities; and for being instrumental in representing the needs of the Asian Pacific disability community in advocating for the passage of the Americans with Disability Act (ADA).
• In 1973, he brokered the first of two new ski resorts project in Colorado.

He is the President of Mega Group, a management consultant group specializing in turning around troubled organizations and conducting futures planning. He is the President of 601 Enterprises and Morale Boosters, a salon company he founded with his wife to help older adults feel good about themselves.