A native Californian, Ms. Crystal was born in Los Angeles and grew up bilingual, speaking Mandarin at
home and English at school. She spent one semester in Taiwan, fully integrated with local elementary
students, before returning to the United States and completing her elementary school studies in Texas.
Her schooling continued with moves to Florida and Ohio, where she remained to complete her
undergraduate degree in Medical Dietetics (with a minor in Spanish) at The Ohio State University. Her
curiosity with the English culture led her to complete a PhD at the University of Cambridge in the UK.
The itinerant nature of her school years exposed Ms. Crystal to many different cultures, but she never
lost her Chinese identity. She would move again to Switzerland and France, before moving to the Bay
Area.
 

Ms. Crystal started teaching her two daughters Chinese and English from a very early age. She wanted
to instill the same, if not stronger, Chinese identity in her daughters, while equipping them with a strong
English foundation for school. She never envisioned being a teacher but accepted the task of
homeschooling her two daughters during the pandemic because she believed her daughters could learn
better and even more at home than through online classes. After nearly three years, Ms. Crystal is keen
to bring her experiences teaching her daughters and her own exposure to diverse cultures growing up to
help other children with their learning.

Languages have always been a strong interest for Ms. Crystal. She continues to improve her Chinese
reading and writing skills with her daughters, while pursuing French in her spare time. In the kitchen,
she loves to perfect her yeasted bread and bun projects.​