May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in Los Angeles. Communities of Asian and Pacific Islander origin have been part of our city’s heritage since it’s founding and through our history their contributions have been an integral part of the growth and success of Los Angeles. LADOT is proud to celebrate AAPI heritage month through the highlighting of landmarks and individuals that have and continue to shape our city.
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AAPI Spotlight of the month -- Joan Hsu
Joan Hsu currently works in the Transit Facilities as a Transportation Engineering Associate III. In getting to know Ms. Hsu, our communications team have provided questions and received responses below, as related to her heritage and journey to LADOT.. 
What's the story of how you and/or your family came to Los Angeles? Are you multi-generational Angelenos or did you arrive more recently?
My parents moved to the suburbs of Los Angeles county from Taiwan in the late 80’s to pursue higher education. My aunt and her family had settled here and sponsored my parents. My mom attended APU, and my dad decided to attend USC at first, then transferred to UCLA a year later. We’ve always joked that he fueled their rivalry by switching schools, but he considers himself a UCLA alumni and cheers for UCLA! My brother and I were born in LA county in the next few years and my dad’s entire family moved here from Taiwan shortly after. I was lucky to grow up with my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins close by. We all still live in LA county.
When did you discover or decide that you wanted to work in Transportation?
My dad worked as a bridge structure maintenance engineer for CalTrans from the late 90’s until he retired in 2017. He would sometimes drive us out to his project sites and show us what he was working on. I always found it interesting that there were so many little pieces that went into transportation that someone just driving down the road never had to think about, yet there were hundreds of people behind the scenes making sure that system worked as intended. I applied to college majoring in general engineering but ultimately gravitated back to transportation engineering. Traveling in LA is infamous for single occupancy cars, traffic, and a lack of public transportation, and I definitely experienced that - I didn’t ride a public bus until I was in college and I didn’t ride a commuter train until I started working at LADOT (other buses/trains had been novelties, like SF’s cable car). Biking was a fun pastime for beach days and walking was just a way to get home from school. I didn’t realize these were essential modes of travel that can connect people to resources. Comparing my studies to my life experiences definitely turned me towards a career in transportation. I ended up pursuing and completing my master’s in civil engineering specializing in transportation.
AAPI Heritage Month in Los Angeles covers many different diverse communities in Los Angeles. How do you view the history and present story of your family's heritage and how it relates to the broader community and Los Angeles as a whole?
I loved growing up in Los Angeles surrounded by Asian immigrants and culture (and FOOD). I think the cool thing about LA is that there are so many Asian communities thriving alongside each other - Taiwanese, Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Indian, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai - the list goes on! I was lucky to be exposed to all of these cultures through my friends and their communities - shout out to SGV (San Gabriel Valley)! While my family is Taiwanese, my grandparents grew up in Taiwan while it was occupied by Japan. They identified deeply with Japanese culture and were fluent in Japanese. My family would often visit Little Tokyo on the weekends when I was younger. As a kid I was just happy to get mochi and taiyaki, but now I think it’s so cool that the different cultures of my family can be experienced in LA within a 15 minute drive (without traffic). That's the beauty of LA - our unique blend of cultures blend together seamlessly in our communities and our people. I’m so proud to be Taiwanese and watch LA’s Asian communities grow and thrive.