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Empowering and serving a community

From the KHS team, Jordyn Sanico and Christian Tanja share their guiding values, mentorship experiences, and highlights of their roles at KHS.
KHS logo with "Imagine A World" as text on a blue and red background

In this episode, Sydney Hunt (2023 cohort) and Anson Zhou (2024 cohort) speak with Christian Tanja (Senior Assistant Director of Admission) and Jordyn Sanico (Admission Outreach Coordinator). Jordyn and Christian share their guiding values, experiences with mentorship, and interesting aspects of the work that they do at KHS. They also share their improbable facts--such as performing in the Carnegie Hall on two different occasions and being able to three prong spearfish!

Resources

Guests

A man and two women sitting at a table with microphones in front of them.

Jordyn Sanico (right) is the Admission Outreach Coordinator for Knight-Hennessy Scholars. In addition to her other duties, she coordinates logistics for over 100 global events, supports recruitment planning and execution, and acts as the first point of contact for outreach efforts. Jordyn earned her BS in Management (Human Resources) and Marketing from Menlo College. Prior to joining KHS, she gained experience in undergraduate admissions and alumni relations, with a focus on marketing and communications. As a first-generation student, she is passionate about helping others navigate their path in higher education, especially within the admissions process.

Christian Tanja (left) is the Senior Assistant Director of Admission at Knight-Hennessy Scholars. On the admission team, he focuses on external partnership development, while executing global recruitment and scholar selection. As a member of Stanford’s Graduate Diversity Staff Council and the National Association of Fellowships Advisors Board of Directors, he’s dedicated to expanding access to fellowships and opportunities broadly. Previously, Christian recruited for Schwarzman Scholars and the Institute of International Education. Equipped with degrees from UCLA and Teachers College, Columbia University, he is passionate about empowering leaders, particularly first-generation and underrepresented students.

Hosts

A woman wearing a denim shirt sitting on the left side and a man wearing a black jacket over a white shirt sitting on the right side, both with a laptop and microphone in front of them.

This episode of Imagine A World is hosted by Sydney Hunt, left, and Anson Zhou, right

Sydney Hunt (2023 cohort), from Cornwall, New York, is pursuing a PhD in electrical engineering with a focus on brain-computer interfaces (BCI) at Stanford School of Engineering. She graduated from Duke University with bachelor’s degrees in electrical/computer engineering and computer science (concentration in artificial intelligence and machine learning), and a minor in gender, sexuality, and feminist studies. 

Anson Zhou (2024 cohort), from Medford, New York, is pursuing an MD at Stanford School of Medicine and an MBA at Stanford Graduate School of Business. He graduated from Johns Hopkins University with a bachelor's degree in biomedical engineering. Anson aspires to bridge engineering, business, and medicine to catalyze translation of healthcare and life science innovations. 

Imagine A World's theme music was composed and recorded by Taylor Goss. The podcast was originally conceived and led by Briana Mullen (2020 cohort), Taylor Goss (2021 cohort), and Willie Thompson, along with Daniel Gajardo (2020 cohort) and Jordan Conger (2020 cohort).

Special thanks to Rachel Desch (2023 cohort), Max Du (2024 cohort), Tanajia Moye-Green (2024 cohort), Philip Onffroy (2023 cohort), Ryan Wang (2024 cohort), Ashley Yeh (2024 cohort), Barkotel Zemenu (2024 cohort), and Elle Rae Tumpalan, KHS marketing and events assistant.

Knight-Hennessy scholars represent a vast array of cultures, perspectives, and experiences. While we as an organization are committed to elevating their voices, the views expressed are those of the scholars, and not necessarily those of KHS.

Full transcript

Note: Transcripts are generated by machine and lightly edited by humans. They may contain errors.

Christian Tanja:

My name is Christian Tanja. I am the Senior Assistant Director of the KH admission team and an honorary member of the 2022 cohort. I imagine a world where everyone feels empowered to lead change in the world around them.

Jordyn Sanico:

Hi, my name is Jordyn Sanico. I'm the Admission Outreach Coordinator on the KH admission team and an honorary member of the 2022 cohort. I imagine a world where service is joyfully abundant and unconditionally given.

Sydney Hunt:

Welcome to the Imagine A World podcast from Knight-Hennessy Scholars. We are here to give you a glimpse into the Knight-Hennessy scholar community of graduate students spanning all seven Stanford schools including business, education, engineering, humanities, law, medicine, and sustainability.

In each episode, we talk with scholars about the world they imagine and what they are doing to bring it to life.

Willie Thompson:

Today we've got Christian Tanja and Jordyn Sanico, two members of the KHS admission team. During our conversation, you'll hear them both discuss their first-gen college experiences, their commitment to service, what it's like to be a KH team member, and so much more.

Sydney Hunt:

Hey, everyone. Welcome to another episode of Imagine A World. My name is Sydney Hunt and I'm one of your co-hosts. I'm a member of the 2023 Knight-Hennessy Scholar Cohort and currently a second year PhD student in electrical engineering.

Today is a very, very special episode because we have a lot of newbies on the podcast today. First off, this will be our first episode with a KH team member, which I'm really excited about. So the scholars are a big part of the KH community, but we would not be able to do anything that we are able to do without all the back-end work that comes from the team. And so, we're excited to get insights from Jordyn and Christian today.

And then, the second new thing is we have our new co-host. Welcome to Anson, and please go ahead and introduce yourself. We're so excited to have you on the pod today.

Anson Zhou:

Yeah, I'm so excited to be here. Hi, everyone. I am Anson. I'm a member of the 2024 cohort, a first-year MD/MBA student currently at the School of Medicine and feel very lucky to be on such a special episode today.

Sydney Hunt:

Yeah.

Anson Zhou:

A very unique one too, right?

Sydney Hunt:

Yeah, I can't wait. Do you want to introduce and say who we're going to be speaking with today?

Anson Zhou:

Yeah, so we're going to be speaking with Jordyn and Christian. Do you guys want to give a quick hello?

Christian Tanja:

Hi, everyone. Thanks so much for having us. Dreams do come true.

Jordyn Sanico:

Yes, they do. Hi, hi, hi everyone. Thank you so much for having us. We're excited to be here.

Sydney Hunt:

Awesome. And which one of you is Christian and which one is Jordyn? Because if the listeners can't see you right now...

Jordyn Sanico:

I was going to say thank you for asking that differentiating question. This is Jordyn.

Christian Tanja:

And this voice is Christian.

Sydney Hunt:

Perfect. Okay. We are so, so excited to be here. I guess we'll start off just by asking how are you doing today? How are you feeling? Anything good, bad happening this week?

Christian Tanja:

Things are going well. I'm staring at a lot of applications these days, so it's right in the thick of admission season, but really inspired by a lot of the stories that we're clawing through right now.

Jordyn Sanico:

And for me personally, while our admission officers are busy at work reading applications, I'm looking ahead to the next cycle.

Sydney Hunt:

Wow, already?

Jordyn Sanico:

Yeah, and to planning what our outreach will look like for future cohorts.

Sydney Hunt:

That's amazing.

Jordyn Sanico:

We're moving on.

Sydney Hunt:

That's very exciting. Before we start, I do want to note that Christian and Jordyn are twinning right now. We currently have matching sweatshirts.

Anson Zhou:

I'm jealous. Why didn't we get the memo on this?

Sydney Hunt:

Yeah. We did not get the memo. They have, yeah, their Stanford KH sweatshirt and we could have been quadruplets, but maybe next time. Maybe next time.

Jordyn Sanico:

It was a last minute coordination, but we will give you a heads-up next time.

Christian Tanja:

We were working really hard to impress you. That's why.

Sydney Hunt:

You're doing it already. Oh, my gosh, you did not have to work hard to impress us. You already impress us.

Anson, yeah. Why don't you take it away and start off our questions for today.

Anson Zhou:

Yeah, so before we jump into some more specific questions, we'd like to ask broader questions so we can get a sense of where you're coming from and how you got here. So before we talk about the world you imagine, let's talk about the world you were born into and have experienced thus far.

Where are you from, what was your journey here?

Christian Tanja:

All right, so I'll go ahead and dive in. These kinds of questions are always... It's like how do you form the narrative of your life? So I'll go ahead and start off by, I was born of two immigrant Filipino parents. I'm a first generation college student myself, and I grew up in a city called Bakersfield.

And I really only knew southern California. And so when I was thinking about where to apply for college, I stayed local because cost was something that was important to me. So I applied to only University of California schools. I was very fortunate to get into several options and I chose UCLA because it was my two hours drive home instead of a flight to and from the Bay Area.

But I think one of the winning factors was the marching band, so that's where I spent a lot of my time in being in the solid gold sound of the UCLA Bruin Marching band. When I graduated... Well actually when I dove in, I was pre-med, like many first generation college students. I later learned through a grueling series of chemistry and physics that it wasn't my calling and that's where I discovered psychology and education, that then dovetailed into my career in higher education.

I graduated in the 2008 global recession, so I sidestepped from my student job into my full-time job as an admission officer where I embarked on the early process of higher education and then I worked as admission officer. Then I jumped over to the other side of the desk to be a college counselor where I worked in China for three years.

Then from there I applied to grad school and sadly Stanford rejected me at the time, and so I ended up heading to New York for graduate school. That's where it changed my life. New York is such a great place to ripen because you really kind of learn more about coexistence and diversity all within a very saturated space.

And then after going through the pandemic, it was time to come home. And so luckily the sister fellowship that I was working with at the time, Shores and Scholars, there was a job posting here for Knight-Hennessy and I applied and when it all lined up, I was able to come back home after being 10 years away from home.

Jordyn Sanico:

Tough story to follow up. I was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii, raised by a single mother. Also first gen, so applying to school, it's kind of like throwing spaghetti at the wall, if you will, just applying wherever I could.

I kept my options to the West Coast, but I knew I always wanted to leave home. Don't get me wrong, Hawaii is a beautiful place to be, but I figured it was always going to be there and so I'd try my chances at spreading my wings. And I really had my heart set on going to school in Washington state, and then I learned that I'm not that comfortable with snow.

Sydney Hunt:

Oh, it's tough. Yeah. That's a big move from Hawaii to Washington.

Jordyn Sanico:

Absolutely. And then I figured, okay, well I should probably go to the one California school I applied to. And so honestly, after visiting the campus. I went to Menlo College right here in Atherton down the road. And it was a wonderful business school, really small campus. It was much smaller than my high school actually. It was about maybe the entire student population was about half the size of my high school in Hawaii, but it was a really nice intimate community, which I really appreciated.

I studied marketing and human resources. And my first on-campus job was in the admissions office, working the front desk and giving tours. After I had graduated, I really thought I was going to head into either marketing or HR. And I think like many in admission work, I kind of fell into it and I pivoted from thinking about working in a corporate space into staying in education. And I've loved it and I haven't left since.

Sydney Hunt:

Amazing, wow. I feel like they're very unique stories, but there's a lot of similar threads between the two of you, and I'm really excited to dive into that on our episode today. I feel like you both, you just have a sense of humility I feel like in you, and I feel like I'm really grateful that now you're our friendly face when we walk into Denning House before, maybe you were the friendly face in the admin office of wherever you were working before. But now we get to see your face every day and I feel like you always bring so much joy and energy, too.

Anson Zhou:

I see Christian every morning. Make his oatmeal in the microwave.

Sydney Hunt:

Do you have a specific process? What does this entail?

Christian Tanja:

No, the oatmeal is a combination of steel rolled oats, cinnamon, dates, lots of nuts. It's just protein and nutrition-packed morning to start off your day.

Jordyn Sanico:

Yeah, I feel like I'm going to need this recipe later.

Christian Tanja:

Will do. Will do.

Sydney Hunt:

Yeah. That's very exciting.

Okay, so I think the first thing that I would like to, I guess, pull on of many of the things that we're going to be talking about, I wanted to ask about how that transition was for you between going from, I guess for Jordyn, a place very far from home and Christian also very far from home when coming back, etc. What was that experience like, especially as a first generation college student?

I feel like it's a big move and yeah, your mind expands, your worldview expands. What was that like for both of you?

Jordyn Sanico:

Yeah, I would say initially it was definitely a little nerve-racking, delving into the unknown and not being able to... Bless my parents, they tried their best to give as much support as they could, but neither one of them could give any personal insight into what that journey was like going to college away from home.

I think just initially I was really nervous but more excited than anything else. And I think the one thought I had over and over was, even if I don't know what I'm doing, I'm going to figure it out. And so that mindset has stuck with me through the four years that I was in college and even until now. I don't know what's next, I don't know what's going to happen, but I'm going to figure it out and I'm going to be okay.

And I think that voice has definitely been my mom's voice in my head, that it's like no matter what, you'll be fine. You'll pivot, you'll figure it out.

Christian Tanja:

What's coming to mind for me is the evolution. I think a lot about inflection points because of how admission works and even when you think about the prompt of connecting the dots. How do these dots all connect when you reflect on where you've been, what the soil that you were cultivated in, and then kind of evolve throughout life.

So my running from Southern California when I was at the juncture of deciding should I take this job to move across the Pacific? I luckily had mentors who was like, "Yeah, you got to go. This will always be here."

And so for me, my initial, I guess early twenties, we're all about running furthest away from home. I think there was a piece of my coming of age where I wasn't necessarily proud of being first-generation. I wasn't proud of growing up with challenges. And so I wanted to get furthest away from home to kind of prove to the world and myself that I'm a person of importance and consequence.

And so moving to China was part of that. Grad school was the next step. And so I had mentioned going to New York City. I went to teacher's college at Columbia University. And it's funny because in my mind at the time I was like, oh, private school. Ivy League, they'll be of this certain caliber. And I'm like, oh, these people are just like me. Everyone is very insecure or unsure about themselves and going through challenges. And so it was a really grounding experience to be like, okay. It's just like everybody else, that how fortunate am I to be in a position where I've seen further because of the shoulders of the people who I've been able to stand on.

And so now coming to this work of admission and fellowships, it's like how do you make sure that people have the tools to feel empowered where they are? And that's why it's such an important part of me and coming back to California reminded me that home isn't necessarily a place, it's what you carry with you through Los Angeles, Shanghai, New York, and now here in San Francisco.

Home is here, not a singular place. So people always ask, are you going to settle down here? I was like, well, the world is always going to be there, and so I'll go wherever the wind blows.

Anson Zhou:

I have to ask, both the co-hosts happened to be New Yorkers, so do we see New York in the future? What was your favorite part of living there?

Christian Tanja:

Was supposed to be two years turned into seven, and I think you all know the story. Because at first, oh yeah. The first six months of living in New York were tough because I was going from full-time work to grad student. I was going from somewhat of a temperate climate to cold. Here I show up with my Converse shoes like are these good snowshoes? Oh, is that a winter coat? Oh, that's a cute winter coat.

So it was a lot of reckoning that happened. And of course with the snow and then Snowmageddon or whatever it was that season, I was just like, this is hard. Where it started to thaw was when community started to form. I was part of some groups in grad school. The flowers started popping up out of the snow, Central Park, what a dream place to be able to train for a marathon. And it was magic.

And so I fell in love with the city. I fell in love with the ease of moving from different pockets across the boroughs. So I lived in the Upper West Side to Queens and Jackson Heights to Park Slope in Brooklyn, so I really got a nice slice of the barography of the city. So it'll always be a love for me and it'll always be a home for me, too.

Anson Zhou:

Yeah, totally. I miss it, too. I'm sure Sydney does as well.

Sydney Hunt:

Definitely, I do. I will say I don't miss the snow as much, but I definitely miss New York and all my friends and family that are there. I also feel like Christian skipped over an important fun fact in New York that perhaps... I heard in the grapevine at Denning that you sang in Carnegie Hall twice. Not just once, but twice. Is that true? Is that a rumor?

Anson Zhou:

In the same year too, right?

Sydney Hunt:

Yeah, in the same year. Yeah, what's the story behind that?

Christian Tanja:

That is true. That is one of my improbable facts is that, from what I knew, that Carnegie Hall was once in a lifetime place to perform. And I was fortunate enough to be part of two incredible organizations, one being the New York City Gay Men's Chorus where I was able to perform at the axis of activism and music. And so being a marching band kid, growing up with Glee, was just such an important space of expression for me.

And I sang in the chorus for a number of years and then after a few years, they spun off an a capella group. And so I was able to perform there with the New York City Gay Men's Chorus. And then after winning regionals for an a capella competition... Just like the movie, it's a real thing. So I performed for the finals, the open finals, for the a capella competition and I was the beatboxer for the group.

Shout out to TONEWALL. So that's the name of the group, and we're just a really cool group of individuals who, again, sing for the livelihoods of many others.

Jordyn Sanico:

You had your real-life pitch-perfect moment.

Christian Tanja:

Yeah, it was.

Anson Zhou:

I'm jealous. One of my improbable facts also mentioned Pitch Perfect because I also did a cappella, but I did not perform in Carnegie Hall. So I'm a little bit jealous.

I think something we're really interested in is mentorship because all the scholars here wouldn't be here today without the people who trusted in us before we trusted ourselves, gave us direction on how to get there. And I think both of you, when you were talking about your journeys, alluded to that.

I think Jordyn, you talked about your mom giving you that sense of trust in yourself even when you're not super sure about how to feel being a new place. And Christian, you mentioned going across the Pacific because of people guiding you there and trusting you.

So I'm curious, today, who are the people who form that circle? Give you that sense of self and gave you that mentorship?

Jordyn Sanico:

Well, I think beyond my mom, one of the first people that comes to mind for me was an elementary school teacher, Mr. Sutherland. Shout out to Mr. Sutherland. I think he's still in Hawaii teaching. But he was my teacher in fourth and fifth grade in a gifted and talented program that I was lucky enough to be a part of.

And he would give me books that were well beyond what I thought were my reading level. I was reading The Hobbit and Watership Down in fourth grade. And he would hand me these giant books and I thought to myself, there's no way this is for me. There's no way that I am capable of delving into this kind of material. And he's like, "No, you can do it. Just try."

And so he got me into the broadcasting background. There was a morning broadcast that we hosted in elementary school and I learned how to do stop-motion. And all of that was in elementary school. And he continued to push all of us to delve into all of these different things. And I think without that initial gentle push of yes, you can do it. Even if you don't think you can just try. That was one of the, I guess, guardian angels. One of my first guardian angels I would say.

And then now, currently, I would say it's people like Christian and Micaela, who is also in the room taking lovely photos of us. Shout out, Micaela. And many others on the team who have been my behind-the-scenes champions. I'm very early into my career and, KH, this is my first job right out of undergrad. And so they've both been incredible, not only thought partners and how to move forward in my career, but also just move through life. They've been incredible resources, and so I'm grateful to them both.

Christian Tanja:

Yeah, I think for me mentorship, there's so many layers to it. You can have mentors who are your exact same age who see around a different corner than you. Of course we know mentors who are many years ahead of us, big brothers, sisters, and siblings who are ahead of us, and it's a multilateral exchange of insight. So I think that's really where there's a core mentorship relationship, that it's not just downloading everything that you know into a person, but there's actually a dialogue there.

So even when listening to Jordyn reflect, I thought of all the different teachers, Mrs. Haas in fifth and sixth grade, Mr. Bolstad, my English teacher who said, "You're not going to community college. You're going to push yourself and go right into university."

Things that I wouldn't think were things that I was capable of. My first boss in my first job in college, a student coordinator, Jolene, who helped me through changing from pre-med to being in higher education. My mentors in the Gay Men's Chorus of Los Angeles who helped me choose to go abroad and have courage. But so much of it is them seeing a version of you that you don't always see and like what you said earlier, Anson, about eventually, if they're telling you a version of yourself that you can't see and you learn to thaw and trust that, then you can really step into a place where you can actually make really good change and powerful contributions where you are.

So shout out to all the mentors here and not here who have shaped everyone. And so I think a lot about those in rec letters and stuff in these admission files that we're reading.

Sydney Hunt:

Yeah, those are really beautiful words, both of you that you said. I totally agree with everything. I feel like for me, similar to you, there were a lot of teachers who I feel pushed me to think outside the box, pushed me to extend beyond what I think I was capable of.

And Jordyn, you mentioned a lot about work behind the scenes. And I feel like in my head, as much as I feel excited, nervous, eager to try new things and try to achieve that potential that people think I have in the back of my head, sometimes there's also that voice that maybe pulls you back on a little bit of a tether being like, oh, I don't know if you're ready. I don't know if you can do it. Even if I achieve one small thing, it might say like, well, you didn't do this and stuff like that.

And I was curious if even though you have all these beautiful guardian angels on your shoulder on the other shoulder, is there ever like a little devil or is it always just that optimism and lovely support?

Jordyn Sanico:

I was going to say, I wish I could say it was always that optimistic voice in the back of my head, but no. That other voice, that negative inner voice, if you will, is always there. And I think over the years I've gotten more and more comfortable sitting with that voice and using it as a tool instead of a hindrance in the work or just in moving through life in general.

Christian always says certain emotions will tell you what's important. Your body will tell you what's important. That voice in the back of my head is like, you're not doing enough or you missed this. That just means those things, those areas of work or community building, et cetera, whatever it might be, are important to me. And so I've begun to kind of use it as an opportunity to navigate or compass, if you will, to point to where I want to move next.

Christian Tanja:

I think my evolution going through my twenties was, I mean, I would always consider myself an extrovert and a people person and an eternal optimist. And the way that that has evolved now is that optimism has to come from some kind of source. You might've heard it described as imposterism or imposter syndrome or imposter phenomenon. But that voice that says, are you sure, I'm not sure if you're ready, you might not succeed, is a grounding force. And so I think my evolution now has been about walking with that voice. That it doesn't go away, that it's about mastering the oscillation between, yes, I can be successful, but if you keep thinking that, then status quo starts to settle in and you don't innovate to change and to evolve and iterate.

And so I think it's important to be able to find that balance, to see how can I allow those two different spirits on my shoulder to convene. That it is about an integration between the light and dark, and I think that's it. So life can't be all positive and all go right. That it's trying to aim for that upward spiral where you can, knowing very well that life will happen, things will become challenging, we'll be disappointed.

It's what you do with that disappointment that I think is key to your character.

Jordyn Sanico:

I definitely find myself comparing a lot, which can be a helpful tool sometimes, but also with that negative inner voice is not always super helpful. But I think it's not about being... At least for myself, what I'm trying to tell myself more and more often, is I don't have to be better than the person next to me. I just have to be a better version of me, even if it's incremental.

And so I guess the comparison can be a helpful tool if framed in the right way, I guess.

Anson Zhou:

Yeah, no, I love how both of you talk about honestly just reckoning with having both of those on your shoulder. I had a mentor say to me once, if you only had an angel on your shoulder, you'd have a neck cramp all the time. Very valid. So I love that you just have to acknowledge that as part of life, and I think that's so important, especially in your first job or going through grad school. All those things are so tough.

One thing I'm really interested about your roles is we know the KH team is so important to the success of our scholars and you guys help with recruiting people to apply into this program and also picking the students who end up becoming part of this cohort and future cohorts. What do you think is, I guess, the most interesting thing of your job that really leads to the program's success and scholar's success?

Christian Tanja:

I think the interesting thing for me is understanding that leadership doesn't have a one typology. And I think that's really amplified when you look across the seven graduate schools and different lived experiences, that there's not that perfect match. And so I think that there's a lot of times where one of the things that I love and is most interesting is how do you make a class and shape it and is to be very different and unique because leveraging the delta between scholars, I think, is part of the magic.

There are lots of times where scholars would meet other folks who they never would've met if it wasn't for Knight-Hennessy, and I think that's part of the magic of what we do. Of course, there are two of us sitting here, we're part of a larger group of people and that readers and selectors and people who are part of this process. So that's one of the things that I love of the work that we do, that it's not just a single person, it's really a collective effort of diverse experiences trying to think about how do they embody the pieces of our leadership model that we use for selection.

So it's one that's evolving all the time. Different degree programs, the ways that arts and humanities interact with science and engineering, that's part of why this is such a special mission that we have the privilege of working on.

Jordyn Sanico:

Absolutely. I would say the interesting part about this work for me is the people, I would say, that I get to meet along the way. I'm not yet fortunate enough to be a part of the selection process and read applications, but I get to be part of the larger outreach events and I will answer a lot of the emails that come into the inbox, which I love.

A phrase that's been shared with me is that everybody is somebody. And so even if it's in a really small interaction, I think whether it's through an email or just any way that I can be helpful, that's one of the more fulfilling parts of the work for me.

Christian Tanja:

Yeah, your response also reminded me that people are all on different journeys. And so I've met students in this, being part of this fellowship's world, that didn't apply until four or five years later. And you get to see that evolution. You get to see how they check in. They see and research and talk to other scholars, they talk to folks, and they also find ways to understand their inflection points. That when they decide to apply that year, they give it all that they can and then they learn whatever the response is on the other side on how to grow from that.

And so I think it's a wonderful privilege to be able to build those relationships over time as we start to hear what are important for them, where do they need support, adding different events, adding different ways of communicating to make sure that we're clear, as clear as possible about what we're looking for and how to find it, how to show that. But as you know through our criteria that there's not one singular way of showing that evidence. It's how are you already aligning what you do, what you're passionate about, to that framework. And so it ought to not take extra work because you ought to already be doing something about it for the application.

Jordyn Sanico:

Yeah, it's definitely holding space for the many stories and many different versions of journeys to Stanford. To your point, there's not a one size kind of fits all formula about how you end up as a scholar or at Stanford. And so it's holding space for all of those different and very unique and special journeys.

Anson Zhou:

I love how the two of you talk about the way that you think about leadership and all these different qualities in sculpting a cohort, because it's just so obvious when you walk into Denning House and speak to scholars that everyone comes from a different path, whether it's from a different part of the world or when we're just having lunch and speaking to them about their interests. It's so obvious every single day, and I feel very lucky to be here. And it's a product of both of your amazing work, so thank you so much.

Sydney Hunt:

Absolutely. Yeah, everyone in all the scholars literally would be negative 4% as happy, as successful, as everything if it were not for the KH team, so I do want to give a big shout-out to not only Jordyn and Christian, but everyone who feels like, yeah, it's a second set of family perhaps in a home away from home.

But something I also wanted to touch on was you mentioned a lot about how there's different paths that can perhaps lead you to a certain outcome. And I was curious, both of you have similar and different paths and both of your 'imagine a world' statements I feel like also have similarities and differences. I was curious what along your path caused you to be passionate about that statement and want to make it a world that you would like to see come to life?

Was there any turning point where that became more obvious for you? And also if you can just repeat your statement for the listeners to hear as well before you go ahead and explain it.

Jordyn Sanico:

My statement is I imagine a world where service is joyfully abundant and unconditionally given. And for me, again, this is a phrase that I've kind of inherited from Christian. One of my north stars is service. And again, I'm going to go back to my mom and I think you're going to hear a lot about her in this episode because I just love her so much. But she, from a young age, instilled in me how fulfilling service can be and not doing it necessarily for yourself or to feel better about yourself, but just the act of giving freely is so special.

And so it started with going to church, actually. We went to church every Sunday and every week we'd volunteer in the nursery where I got to hang out with kids and play with the little babies while their parents were in service. And so that was my first introduction to volunteering.

But I would say service is just so important to me because I may not be the person that's going to find a cure for something or I may not make it to the moon and be an astronaut, but I want to uplift the people that can and who will and who have those talents. And so even if it's behind the scenes, just the small or big acts of uplifting others. And I think going back to what Christian had said, knowing that you're standing on the shoulders of everyone that's come before you and trying to pass that on.

Christian Tanja:

Yes, we're ancestors' wildest dreams. For my statement, which is imagine a world where everyone feels empowered to lead change in the world around them, comes from the skill set that I possess that has been forged over my life, which is both a combination of storytelling and relationship building.

The reason why I picked those specific words is inclusion is one of my north stars about trying to think about who is not here yet? How do we make sure that we have as many perspectives around the table? What are the channels to which everybody has heard? Is about trying to restore agency and folks to lead where they are, that you don't have to have a title to lead where you are, that it's shown through behaviors.

And so I want to use my skills to help empower others that they actually have a say. There's always a choice somewhere in the calculus where you're making a choice on how you're choosing to hear it, how you're choosing to act on it. And so it is about trying to restore agency. And whatever realities play out, you then make a choice on how you want to respond and react to that.

So I don't always listen to my own advice, but I'm really good at giving it to other people. And so whether that be grad school or a mentee who's applying to a scholarship program or anything about grad school or jobs, I think it's just really important to think about the range of combinations of what you can control amidst all the stuff that we cannot. So I think that's why it's really important for me to underscore those pieces and change the world to be a better place.

That's why I love this podcast so much, because it is us reaching and envisioning together, but then also what are the steps to get there? And that's where agency is so such a foundational piece to that.

Anson Zhou:

Yeah, I resonate with both of those so much. Jordyn, I want to start with you first with some followups. I think something that's really beautiful about the way you frame service is that service should be unconditional as well. And you talk about your mom, and we're going to go back to your mom again.

But I think for just regular people, you're really busy with your own lives. There's so much going on. And you want to help those around you. How do you think about that, trying to put that unconditionalness into access service for others and uplifting others? To be able to provide service to others and uplift others even when you're going through hard times yourself and have things on your plate?

Jordyn Sanico:

Absolutely. I would say I'm, I think, very similar to Christian. Energized by people. I distinctly remember an immersion weekend experience where I was just so physically tired that I think part of the team wanted to send me home because they were just so worried that I wasn't getting enough sleep.

But in talking to a few finalists who are now scholars, maybe just five or 10 minutes of conversation, I was just completely revamped and ready to go for the rest of the weekend. And so I think I pick up the energy and being able to just connect with other people, even if it's over something small, how their day is going or what they're working on. I find joy in being able to hold space for other people, and that energizes me to do the work, not necessarily that I need to do this, this work for me. It's like I'm seeing further down the line, even if it's small impacts incrementally that my service, it's in service of others, and not of self.

Anson Zhou:

That's beautiful. And we totally feel the effects of that. So thank you so much.

Christian. I think one thing you've been talking about, especially in the last year, is that you've been able to travel a lot to a ton of different places. And you talk about inclusion and finding those people from paths that are maybe not as typical, to come to places like Stanford, to Knight-Hennessy.

What do you think the role of going in person and reaching out to those people plays in drawing these less traditional applicants to come to Stanford?

Christian Tanja:

Yeah, I consider it an honor and a privilege to be able to carry the banner of Stanford to places beyond the horizon. I had the opportunity to go from East Asia to Latin America in this past year and further solidify that leadership as it's shaped in all these different contexts. That it is about this, it echoes our multicultural mission. That you want to broaden how you see the world because it's not for everybody.

That there are different ways where leadership in one context is being on a stage at a podium and leadership in another context is sitting in a circle on the ground. And I think that being able to empower students to be able to honor whatever that version is and to contribute that. I think a lot about, yes, what are they doing to fit the culture, but also what are they adding to the culture as well. That we want to provide the different frameworks or words of advice on how to preserve that cultural core.

I'll be looking to going to South Asia this year and be able to echo some of these teachings. The application workshops we now host was coming from places that don't have offices that support scholarships and staff that have applications. And so there is not only literally a distance travel, there's also just resources and abilities.

So I just find it really important that if given the same tools people can fly. And so being able to be a person to get there, as much as it's draining on the body. There are some times where I'm less than 48 hours in a country. When I crossed through Lima, Peru, I was like, Machu Picchu is right there, but I can't stop. I got to go to Chile.

And so it's both gutting and I'm grateful to be able to get out there on the front lines. And as we know, there's no replacement for engaging people in person. We know that there's stuff that is communicated, yes, beyond Zoom, but the body also shows a lot of that, too.

So it has been the thrill of a lifetime to be able to get to these places that I've never been. And I'm lucky. I count myself lucky.

Anson Zhou:

I'm so in support of these in-person events, I'm from New York, so it wasn't like I'm from a different country. But I remember going to the in-person session that y'all held in New York City, and I think that was the moment I decided to apply. Because before that, I didn't trust that it was possible or it was something that was in my trajectory.

But there really is no replacement for seeing their current scholars there. John and Tina were there, you and Rachel were there. It was very inspiring.

Christian Tanja:

It makes it very real when you have a representative. And so we're trying to find ways to connect dots with other entities of Stanford, the Alumni association... Oh, my gosh, the Alumni association. When I went out to East Asia this year to Korea, Japan, and China, they were just really, I saw the future of Knight-Hennessy in talking to these people. Because they were just really incredible and hospitable and were reaching for some bigger purpose.

So I'm excited. I know our program's only eight years old, but it is already on track to really make some waves in the world.

Sydney Hunt:

I hope so. I hope so. I mean, we have people like Jordyn and Christian leading us. I feel like it's inevitable. Something that you both touched upon, I feel like, was having that access to resources and trying to equal the... Sorry, what's the phrase? Level the playing ground as much as you can, even if some people require a little bit of an extra push, just as we all had growing up when we had people push us to push those boundaries further than we thought we would be able to go.

But something I guess to transition as we think about closing up this episode, although I could talk to you forever and ever.

Anson Zhou:

Same.

Sydney Hunt:

Is what is a common ground and foundation for people in Knight-Hennessy once they're here? And that is improbable facts. Because when you're applying, whether you're going to be on the KH team or you're going to be a scholar, we ask people to give a list of eight improbable facts. These are things that are true about you, but someone might not know.

And so I was curious if either of you two had one or more improbable facts that you'd be willing to share. And yeah, I'll leave it to you. Say whatever you would like.

Christian Tanja:

For a quick context, the team does this for anyone who starts on the team. So no, we share our own improbable facts, which I think is part of the fun culture code that when a new team member comes in, we have a meal and we all share our own improbable facts. So it is one of those things that we love maintaining the culture of Knight-Hennessy.

But I'll have Jordyn go first.

Jordyn Sanico:

On the spot here. Okay, let's see. One improbable fact is that I can three-prong spearfish.

Sydney Hunt:

Whoa. Oh, my gosh.

Jordyn Sanico:

And at one time I could hold my breath for three minutes. I don't think I can anymore. So it's a little out of date, but I haven't tried in a minute. But I really enjoy being in water. The ocean is my happy place. I remember doing a code plunge at Sierra Camp, and that was fun. I just really enjoyed being in water.

Anson Zhou:

So what kind of fish were you catching?

Jordyn Sanico:

Let's see. I only know the Hawaiian names for this, so uhu is like a parrotfish. Then there's awa, which I don't know what the other name for that is. But I started going with my dad and my grandpa, and they're the ones who taught me how to do it.

But initially I was the one that had to hold onto the buoy that had the string of all the fish that they caught. So they didn't let me try spearfishing right away. So I had to earn my stripes, if you will, and hold onto the buoy for a year or two.

Sydney Hunt:

Yeah, work your way up. I heard that there's also another perhaps Hawaiian tradition that you are very talented at that is related to dancing. You don't have to say if you don't want to, we can cut this. But I do want to say that I've heard from around Denning that you're an incredible hula dancer. Is that true?

Jordyn Sanico:

I don't know about incredible. I feel like incredible is a-

Christian Tanja:

Yes, you are.

Jordyn Sanico:

... Okay. Well, thank you. I'll receive that. Thank you both.

Yeah, actually that's a second improbable fact is I danced hula at the opening of the Apple Store in Waikiki.

Sydney Hunt:

Wow.

Jordyn Sanico:

When I was younger. So I started dancing around five or six. I'll preface this by saying I'm not native Hawaiian, but I've grown up my entire life around many Kanaka or native Hawaiians. My half-sister is native Hawaiian as well. So is my roommate.

And so it's just being immersed in the culture, native Hawaiian culture. In Hawaii, dance or hula is a big part of it. And similar to my love for the water, I think dancing hula is also a place of respite for me. Everything kind of just melts away. I forget who is in the audience or what I'm dancing for. It's kind of you get lost in it, which I think Christian can probably speak to as a performer as well.

Sydney Hunt:

Yeah.

Christian Tanja:

Yeah. I mean, you've heard some of my improbable facts already about when I was performing. So being in admissions, and for UCLA in particular, I got two opportunities or a few opportunities to engage with celebrities in Hollywood. So one of my improbable facts is I gave a college presentation to Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith, who was in the audience during one of my presentations. And I also gave a campus tour to Hugh Laurie. He's the actor who plays House, MD. And so it's also admission related.

I love this question about improbable facts because it helps you question what is improbable to you. So I very much could say that I'm a first generation college student. I ran a marathon to celebrate my 30th birthday. But it's having a combination of being able to think of what makes you unique, what is making you special, what surprises people. So I hope in the spirit of sharing these, that it takes the edge off.

That it doesn't have to be some wild discovery or achievement, that it could be something as simple as just who you are and sharing those different aspects of you.

Jordyn Sanico:

Great. I love that we have that tradition. If we are going to ask that of you as scholars and as applicants, it's also a good time for us to reflect on asking ourselves what improbable facts we have as well.

Sydney Hunt:

Yeah, absolutely. It was probably my favorite part of the application. And I feel like after writing so many, I'll say boring, PhD statements about what research I've done and what I want to do, I was very, very happy to be able to have to sit and think and process about what does it mean for me. And some were very silly and somewhere more serious, and I really love that tradition. And it's a great icebreaker as well when you're coming in person for immersion weekend or for when you actually start being a KH scholar.

And so on the topic of questions, our last segment will be our rapid fire questions. And so these are questions that you'll have, ideally one sentence, to answer. Hopefully it'll be a great experience. But of course if there's any you don't want to answer, we're happy to move on to the next one.

Anson, do you want to start? Kick it off?

Anson Zhou:

We're going to start pretty easy. This is just a factual question, okay? How many siblings do you have, if any?

Jordyn Sanico:

I have one sister.

Christian Tanja:

Three.

Sydney Hunt:

Okay. Next question. Oh, Christian, that might be hard for you. What's the country that you haven't visited yet but would like to?

Christian Tanja:

Oh. It's so many.

Sydney Hunt:

Yeah. You traveled so much.

Christian Tanja:

Norway. That's where my brother's family lineage is from. So I'd love to go to Scandinavia and see Norway.

Jordyn Sanico:

I have not yet been to Europe at all, and I would love to go to Ireland or Scotland.

Anson Zhou:

What is your spirit animal?

Jordyn Sanico:

First one that comes to mind for me is a dragon, because my Chinese zodiac is a dragon.

Christian Tanja:

First that came to mind was a manta ray. I can't swim, but I want to fly. And so that's kind of the middle ground of what it looks like flying underwater. So I love manta rays.

Jordyn Sanico:

Not yet. Not yet.

Christian Tanja:

Not yet, I guess.

Sydney Hunt:

Okay. This one I really, really like, is if a song started playing every time that you walked into Denning House, what song would it be?

Anson Zhou:

It's like your anthem as you walk up the stairs.

Christian Tanja:

Lose my Breath, Destiny's Child.

Anson Zhou:

I love it. I love it.

Jordyn Sanico:

For some reason, my mind goes to just a Bee Gees song. I don't know why I grew up listening to oldies music in the living room with my grandpa. Now I'm blanking on titles.

Sydney Hunt:

It could just be vibes too. A Bee Gees vibe song. That's perfect.

Anson Zhou:

We'll go with that.

Jordyn Sanico:

Yeah, that's my answer.

Anson Zhou:

Sydney, would it be bad if we made them sing?

Jordyn Sanico:

Oh, my God.

Anson Zhou:

Their song choice right now?

Jordyn Sanico:

Okay. I'm not a singer, but Christian is a wonderful singer.

Sydney Hunt:

Maybe he can sing and Jordyn can dance.

Anson Zhou:

Oh yeah.

Jordyn Sanico:

Perfect, because our lovely audience can't see it.

Anson Zhou:

We'll get that on the video next time.

Sydney Hunt:

Yeah, we'll make this a video episode now just for this part.

Anson Zhou:

Part two, right.

Jordyn Sanico:

Insert short clip.

Sydney Hunt:

Exactly. Okay, we have two more questions for you. We're almost done.

Anson Zhou:

I know we're sort of in the deep of admissions reading season right now, and Jordyn, you're planning for the next admissions season. What is your go-to snack or drink of choice as a little pick-me-up on those tougher days?

Jordyn Sanico:

I would say mine is kombucha. I love a good kombucha. And to me, I don't feel as guilty about drinking it as I would like soda, but it's a nice option.

Christian Tanja:

Yeah. Oat milk latte, that's all tongue twister, is usually my go-to at a coffee shop. And I like nuts and cheese. That's my snacks. Like a little mouse.

Sydney Hunt:

Okay. Okay, this is our final rapid-fire question, is what is something that you wish scholars knew about the KH admin team?

Jordyn Sanico:

I would say I wish that scholars knew?

Sydney Hunt:

We can say scholars or anyone in general.

Jordyn Sanico:

Yeah. I think one of the things I wish people knew is that we're so passionate about the work that we also, not put pressure on ourselves, but there is a weight that we carry knowing how important this opportunity is for so many people. And so we don't take that role lightly. And so I'd say we are trying to be really intentional and are really intentional about the whole admission process.

And so applicants and all the scholars are very important to us, and so we think long and hard about it and very passionate about the work.

Christian Tanja:

Yeah. My ad is that the team is not a monolith and that, just like the scholar community, is just so diverse. To get to know all of us. We might be heads down work or busy running around behind the scenes, but we're also humans that thrive on connection. And so it's one of those things that gives wind to ourselves, is knowing how many different missions are upstairs. Personal missions of what they're working towards, worlds that they're wanting to realize that we're also part of that creation.

And so come get to know us, tap us on the shoulders.

Jordyn Sanico:

Coffee, lunch.

Christian Tanja:

Coffee, lunch, that we're also eager to sit down and get to know and exchange stories as well. So it's just a wonderful pleasure to be part of this community.

Anson Zhou:

I love that. I love it. All right, as we wrap up, last final sort of question. We just want to give you the space to talk about anything you want. I know we already said anything you want scholars to know, but literally anything. Another fact, a fun fact.

Sydney Hunt:

Something we didn't touch upon in this episode that you really wanted to say. A shout-out to someone specific. Whatever your heart desires.

Jordyn Sanico:

The first thing that came to my mind is that Christian and I are both Filipino and I love that. I feel like in part of being under Christian's mentorship, if you will, I've also reconnected with my Filipino heritage, which Hawaii is such a big melting pot. But I'd never really felt like I connected specifically to my Filipino ancestors as I have in the time since I've known Christian.

And so, thank you for that gift.

Christian Tanja:

And that's a good segue into my piece of sitting back in the soil that I was cultivated in. Here at Stanford, we're at such a special place that there is a world beyond Denning House. And so I've had the wonderful privilege of creating more coalition with other team members across campus.

And so I invite all scholars and people about how to create those connections. Whether you're a part a scholar yourself, or you have connections, how do we positively change and work together? I think is my final zoom out, that there's just so much magic on this campus that we got to aim it all in the same direction towards really solving those challenges.

So even now as sitting into looking at my third year here, I'm finally feeling oriented to what's out here. And so all the different research centers and grant opportunities, it's simple as opening up and finding that common ground. And so yesterday was a great example at the artist talk of seeing different members across campus come to celebrate the creation and interrogation of what forces are in the world. And there's just some of my favorite events that are open to the larger campus.

So let's keep on inviting people into this coalition to really make a change and not only imagine a world, but see the world that we want to be in.

Sydney Hunt:

Yes.

Anson Zhou:

Yes.

Sydney Hunt:

What a beautiful way to end the show. I am so, so grateful to Anson for being the first.

Christian Tanja:

You got it.

Sydney Hunt:

So many firsts. This is really exciting.

And then of course, Jordyn and Christian, for taking a big chunk of your day and very busy work life admission cycle to speak with us, to share your story, to be very vulnerable and show the world how you are making the world a better place in every single way possible.

So I'm very grateful for you all, for your time, for your energy, for the love that you give. And we hope that this is a first of many KH admin team episodes.

So, thanks everyone.

Anson Zhou:

Thank you so much.

Christian Tanja:

Bye.

Anson Zhou:

Bye-Bye.

Jordyn Sanico:

Bye.

Sydney Hunt:

Bye, friends.

Sydney Hunt:

Thank you for joining us for this episode of Imagine A World, where we hear from inspiring members of the KHS community who are making significant contributions in their respective fields, challenging the status quo, and pushing the boundaries of what is possible as they imagine the world they want to see.

Willie Thompson:

This podcast is sponsored by Knight-Hennessy Scholars at Stanford University, a multidisciplinary, multicultural graduate fellowship program providing scholars with financial support to pursue graduate studies at Stanford, while helping equip them to be visionary, courageous, and collaborative leaders who address complex challenges facing the world.

Follow us on social media @knighthennessy. And visit our website at kh.stanford.edu to learn more about the program and our community.

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