Nathan YounA case in progress
 CV

The supporting record · 03

Years,
not lines
on a list.

The commitments below span years, not application seasons—service since 2021, teaching since 2024, music since middle school.

A / Advocacy & law

Learning to speak for others.

  • Voice for the Voiceless
    Founder and president · 2026–present
    Started the Crean Lutheran chapter, now over 40 members strong.
  • Korean Church Coalition — Washington, D.C.
    Summer Missions and Intern Leadership Program · July 2026
    Advocated for North Korean human rights and refugee protection; led my grade-level group, delivered a speech at the National Press Club, and met with lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
  • Crean Lutheran Mock Trial Team
    Bailiff · 2025–present. Scrimmaged against Orange County schools; our team won a match in the 2025–26 county tournament.
  • UCI Mock Trial Boot Camp
    Trial advocacy, argumentation, and public speaking · June 2026
  • Speech and Debate Club
    2025–present
  • City of Irvine Teen Community Police Academy
    Leadership intern · July 2026
Read why law →

B / Service

Time given, year after year.

HSYAT — City of Irvine Youth Action Team

Member · 2021–2024

Community-based youth leadership program: service projects, leadership training, and event organizing across three years.

Bethel Korean School

Teaching assistant · 2024–present

Help teach Korean language and culture to about 12 children, ages 5–12.

Senior nursing homes

Weekend volunteer · 2025–present

Missing my own grandmother taught me how isolating it is for seniors without family nearby. I visit on weekends to sing, talk, and simply keep company.

Vision-care mission in Tijuana

Volunteer · November 2025

Assisted eye exams and eyeglass distribution for underserved communities. When turnout exceeded expectations, I organized the crowd into groups by medical need so the team could serve hundreds efficiently.

Community events

Volunteer · 2025

KASEC Family Fun Day for children with disabilities; community service with the Chung Cheong Society of Orange County; double bass at a benefit concert for people affected by the Palisades wildfire. At an OC Coastkeepers cleanup in Newport Beach, I spoke with Congressman Dave Min about litter on the shore.

C / Leadership

Responsibility in practice.

OffSchool Authors

President · 2025–present

Helped younger writers publish a creative writing anthology. We sold over 200 copies and donated over $2,000 to a missionary group in El Progresso, Honduras, and Watts church in Los Angeles.

Psalm Singers

President · 2025–present

Lead weekend singing visits to senior homes. We raised over $100 for Christmas gifts for residents.

Drone Aerial Photography Club

Vice president · 2025–present

Help members work toward drone licenses and film school soccer games from the air. Our fundraising supports Crittenton and people affected by the Palisades wildfire.

Crean Lutheran High School ASB

Link Crew leader · 2026

Welcome incoming freshmen and help organize dances, pep rallies, and school spirit events.

D / Academic foundation

Crean Lutheran High School

Irvine, California · Expected graduation: May 2027

  • 4.40 weighted GPA · 3.74 unweighted GPA
  • ACT 34
  • 11 AP courses · AP Scholar with Distinction, 2026
  • Law Cohort, 2025–present
  • Harvard Science Research Conference, October 2025
Explore my academics →

E / Making things

Built, not just listed.

Vision-training app

Growing up with severe myopia and a lazy eye, I built the Android/iOS app I wished I’d had—eye therapy and training exercises for myopia and amblyopia. During six hours of shadowing at Insight Vision Center, I observed how an optometrist explained eye exams and prescriptions to patients.

Congressional App Challenge

Designed and built an app entry using JavaScript, HTML, and CSS.

Languages & creative practice

English and Korean · Photography, videography, and self-taught stop-motion animation.

F / Music

Another kind of voice.

Six years of cello, four years of double bass—and auditioned seats held year after year.

  • CASMEC All-State performance
    First chair, double bass · Sacramento Memorial Auditorium, 2026 · Audience of 3,800
  • SCSBOA All-Southern Honor Orchestra
    Assistant principal double bass · 2023–2025 · Audience of 3,500
  • IUSD Honor Orchestra
    Principal double bass · Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, 2025 · Audience of 2,000
  • Crean Lutheran orchestras
    Principal double bass, Symphonic Orchestra · 2024–present
  • Portola High School Symphonic Orchestra
    Principal double bass · 2022–2024
  • Tri-M Music Honor Society
    Member · 2026

G / Honors & research

Recognition along the way.

  • AP Scholar with Distinction
    2026
  • Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
    Honorable Mention, Alliance for Young Artists & Writers · 2026
  • Peaceful Unification Advisory Council
    Certificate of Recognition for volunteer service and youth leadership, Orange–San Diego Chapter · June 2023
  • Academic honors
    Crean Lutheran Distinguished Scholar; National Recognition Program for Outstanding Academic Achievement.
  • Service and civic recognition
    Orange County Supervisor’s Service Award; recognition from the City of Buena Park, Congressman Young Kim, and the California State Assembly.
  • Programs and writing
    Completed the Cool OC Youth Climate Leadership Program and Irvine’s Teen Community Police Academy. Participated in the Bow Seat Writing Contest.
  • Science Research Team
    Paper on how AI affects perceived information accuracy, submitted to the National High School Journal of Science · August 2026. Other projects explore how phone notifications affect attention and how North Korea’s political system restricts human rights.

In the field

The record, in pictures.

In Honduras

People gathered in a hall raise their hands for a group photo
The gatheringA group portrait in Honduras.
Children and a volunteer sit around a table with activity sheets
Around the tableSpending time with children during the visit.
Participants sit in a row beside a microphone and music stand
At the microphoneA moment from the community gathering.

Psalm Singers

Four Psalm Singers members stand together with a double bass
A senior home visitBringing the double bass along for a weekend visit.
Three people outside the recycling center hold up a receipt
Recycling for Psalm SingersClub members at the recycling center.
Club members write cards and arrange gift bags at a table
Christmas cardsWriting notes for senior home residents.
Students write cards beside a stack of wrapped gifts
Gifts for residentsWrapping gifts and tucking a card into each bag.
Rows of filled gift bags sit beside volunteers at a table
Packing the bagsChristmas gifts ready for the visit.

Community service

Student volunteers stand together wearing red aprons and gloves
Chung Cheong SocietyVolunteering alongside other students at a community event.
Volunteers line a serving table set with food trays and plates
OffSchool AuthorsHelping serve a meal at a community event.
Nathan at an eyeglass distribution table during the vision-care mission in Tijuana
Tijuana, MexicoEye exams and eyeglass distribution for underserved communities.

Clubs and music

OffSchool Authors members in club shirts at a community celebration
OffSchool AuthorsWriting, music, and service—performing at a community celebration.
Drone Aerial Photography Club at work
Drone Aerial Photography ClubShooting for the annual fundraising exhibit.
Nathan standing with his double bass on stage at the All-State orchestra concert
CASMEC All-StateDouble bass, Sacramento Memorial Auditorium.
Crean Lutheran orchestra in performance
Crean Lutheran orchestrasPrincipal bass, Symphonic Orchestra.