Anna Au
Quick Facts
Age: 33
Major: Diagnostic Ultrasound, 2025
Notable: First-generation
Languages: Cantonese, Mandarin
Transfer Institution: South Seattle College, Associate in Science
“Civility is the backbone that holds society together, the guidance we seek in each other, and the love that bonds us as citizens of earth regardless of gender, orientation, ethnicity, nationality, religion, age, or status.”
Service & Work:
Clinical Laboratory Lead, Harborview Medical Center, May 2023–Present
COVID-19 Laboratory Supervisor, Curative, Inc., October 2021–December 2022
COVID-19 Tester and Site Lead, Curative, Inc., July 2020–October 2021
Vice President and Legislative Liaison of United Student Association, South Seattle College, February 2019–March 2020
Phlebotomist and Lab Support Specialist, Kaiser Permanente, September 2016–December 2017
Awards & Honors:
Alfie Scholars, Cohort 8, 2023–2025
Achievement Scholarship
AANAPISI Scholarship, 2019–2020
APIA Scholar, 2019–2020
All Washington Scholar, 2019–2020
SSC Leadership Scholarship, 2019–2020
Phi Theta Kappa Scholarship, 2019–2020
President’s List, South Seattle College, 2019–2020
Dean’s List, South Seattle College, 2018–2019
Anna’s Story
My name is Anna Au; I'm a first-generation Asian American college student, a former Covid-19 tester, and an Alfie Scholar studying Diagnostic Cardiac Ultrasound at Seattle University. My greatest calling in life is to tend human suffering as a healthcare provider. It’s a mission I held dearly ever since I was a child. My dad had passed away from a heart attack at a very young age, a heart attack that could have been prevented, if only he had an echocardiogram (ultrasound of the heart). I want to learn how to perform this lifesaving preventive procedure expertly and be able to utilize what I learned to help prevent the same tragedy from happening to other people and their family.
My mom worked multiple jobs below minimum wage to raise me, but despite her efforts, she couldn’t afford the mortgage, and we became homeless shortly after my dad’s passing. We struggled financially most of our lives. By the time I was 15 years old, she was forced to return to China due to her immigration status. I have been on my own since, working hard to financially support the both of us, hopeful, that one day, I will be able to not only break this unrelenting cycle of poverty for my family, but to also create a lasting positive impact for the patients in our community. I’ve dedicated the past 10 years of my life to jobs pertaining to this calling and have held various positions at hospitals, labs and even testing sites.
During the start of the pandemic, it was a frightening time of great uncertainty for many people; instinctively I knew I must do whatever I could to help. I became a COVID-19 tester, without hesitation and a sense of responsibility to do my part. I was not the heroic doctors and nurses who have given us so much during this global crisis by providing care at the hospitals. But I was able to contribute in my own small way as I donned the same PPE and offered testing over a shielded barrier. In the past 3 years I have professionally tested over 5,900 patients in the Seattle area for COVID-19. I even had the privilege of testing the faculty and students at Seattle University when they had a Curative testing site next to the campus.
Following my contributions in the past, my next plan is to provide pro-bono consultations for patients with no health insurance or inadequate coverage as soon as I become a sonographer or a doctor. It’s important for me to continue giving back to my community, because it has given me so much. I ask you to join me in my ambitious journey and contribute to our community in your own unique way. The world pulled together to end a pandemic. And together, we can work towards progress and provide care to the most vulnerable.
Goals:
My primary professional goal in life is to either become a respected cardiothoracic surgeon or a medical doctor specializing in cardiovascular diseases. While I work towards this lengthy rewarding journey, I hope to first complete my degree in diagnostic ultrasound, specializing in cardiology at Seattle University. I specifically chose this area of study because of my father, who could have been saved if only he had an echocardiogram (ultrasound of the heart). I want to learn how to perform this lifesaving preventive procedure expertly. I envision myself learning everything about ultrasound and utilizing this versatile technology to not only provide patients in our community with crucial information about their health but also help improve their quality of life through accessibility. Timely diagnosis and preventive medicine are two of the most important factors in today’s healthcare system. However, not everyone in our community has equal access, an issue that has directly impacted my family. Two decades ago, I came home from elementary school on a sunny afternoon with peanut brittle in my pocket, intending to share this treat with my immigrant father; it was his favorite candy. I waited and waited, but he never made it home. I had lost my dad to a heart attack, a heart attack that could have been prevented if we had the money or the insurance to cover a visit to the doctor for symptoms he had been experiencing the week prior. He was only 42 years old. Until then, I never knew one broken heart can shatter so many, never knew how inequality in healthcare could add to the fragility of life itself. That moment has shaped the long-term goals I am pursuing today.
On Civility:
To be civil is to recognize our own innate humanity, to respect all people, and (most importantly for me) to have kindness for one another. We must be genuine and sincere to represent the underrepresented justly and provide a voice for the voiceless without ego. In its essence, civility is the backbone that holds society together, the guidance we seek in each other, and the love that bonds us as citizens of earth regardless of gender, orientation, ethnicity, nationality, religion, age, or status. To foster civility, we must respect all individuality and lived experiences beyond our own. After all, the world could not advance without the positive progression from the contributions of our differences. Together we can build a more inclusive and equitable future for everyone as we are empowered by the leaders that came before us and inspired by the promise of a brighter tomorrow for the next generation.
