POETRY, ESSAY, & BLOGGING PORTFOLIO
Poetry
“Abide,” winner of the University of Michigan Hopwood Undergraduate Poetry Prize 2025
“Fish Head,” 1st place winner of the University of Michigan Hopwood Underclassmen Poetry Prize 2023 and the Roy & Helen Meador Award
“benediction,” featured poem for Poettreetown Ann Arbor 2025
“Poem for a solitary evening walk,” featured poem for Poettreetown Ann Arbor 2024
“at the Musée de l'Orangerie,” winner of the Troy Public Library 2024 poetry contest
“Morning walk,” featured poem for Poettreetown Ann Arbor 2023
Essays
“Dear body,” winner of the University of Michigan As I See It Literary Competition
“How to make cucumbers speak,” finalist for the University of Michigan’s AA&PI History Month’s Food Memories Essay Contest
Blogging
Wei with Words: personal travel blog documenting a semester of study abroad in Netherlands
JOURNALISM PORTFOLIO
Michigan Asian American Creatives Project
Creator & Journalist
Jan. 2025 - May 2025
The Detroit News
Business Reporting Intern
Dow Jones News Fund Business Reporting Intern
Jun. 2024 - Aug. 2024
The Michigan Daily
Style Columnist
Jul. 2022 - Dec. 2023
Published 9 front page stories out of 20 total articles. Wrote business feature stories with an emphasis on food.
My best articles:
She owns a million dollar Michigan bakery. But she barely pays herself.
Chefs say it’s not an easy leap from pop-up to permanent business
Nothing to mock: Nonalcoholic cocktails, beer create buzz in Michigan
The CDC is imposing new rules for dogs entering the US. Owners are not happy.
Hawk this way: how street newspapers are leaving their mark in Michigan
Published a dozen+ articles for the University of Michigan’s student newspaper. Covered food, campus culture, and arts. See all my articles here.
My best articles:
The Front Porch Project
Creator & Journalist
Sept. 2022 - Dec. 2022
Detroit Neighborhood Entrepreneurs Project
Writer
Aug. 2022 - Present
A collection of interviews of 15 Asian American creatives from Michigan to provide accessible representation & empower AAPI youth interested in arts careers. Interviewed a diverse array of artists (writers, visual artists, chefs, and performing artists), including a Grammy award winning singer, Guggenheim winning poet, James Beard award nominated chef, Broadway dancer, and more.
Received a University of Michigan Arts Initiative Student Grant to distribute the project to local Michigan high schools and colleges for AAPI History month.
Created an independent journalism project on homelessness in Ann Arbor, MI with the mission to showcase homelessness through a humane and empowering lens. Shared the stories of 3 Ann Arbor residents who’ve experienced homelessness + provided viewers ways to take action.
Authored news articles on the Detroit business environment and Detroit entrepreneurs to raise program visibility and demonstrate impact to donors.
My best articles:
BAKING & RECIPE DEVELOPMENT PORTFOLIO
Recipe Development
Black sesame banana bread, Q Bakehouse & Market Ann Arbor (see photo below)
Caramelized peach upside-down cake, The Detroit News
Chinese chive omelet, The Michigan Daily
Baking
Baking Assistant at Q Bakehouse & Market Ann Arbor (Aug. 2024 - Mar. 2025)
Pastry Cook at White Wolf Japanese Patisserie (Jun. 2023 - Aug. 2023)
Black sesame banana bread (originally developed recipe for Q Bakehouse & Market Ann Arbor)
Black sesame banana bread (originally developed recipe for Q Bakehouse & Market Ann Arbor)
Matcha snowskin mooncakes
Vietnamese coffee snowskin mooncakes at Q Bakehouse
Scallion milk bread bun at Q Bakehouse
Matcha crepe cakes at White Wolf Japanese Patisserie
Dark chocolate miso caramel hazelnut tart at White Wolf Japanese Patisserie
Mont Blanc at White Wolf Japanese Patisserie
Black sesame shortbread at White Wolf Japanese Patisserie
An pan (red bean bun) at White Wolf Japanese Patisserie
Strawberry crepe cake at White Wolf Japanese Patisserie