Alex Poon
Alex Poon | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1992 |
| Alma mater | Wellesley College, 2014 |
| Known for | transgender advocacy |
Alex Poon is an American transgender advocate.
Education and background
[edit]Poon graduated from Wellesley College (a women's college) in 2014, where he majored in computer science.[1][2] He came out as transgender as a sophomore.[3] He was the first out transgender person to win the annual hoop rolling race since it began in 1895.[1][4][5][6] His mother, Helen Poon, also won when she was a senior at Wellesley in 1982.[1][2][5]
Poon is Chinese-American and grew up in Virginia.[3][7][8] He attended Holton-Arms School, an all-girls high school, where he was captain of the girls' swim team and the men's water polo team at a local all-boys school.[3][7]
Career and advocacy
[edit]Poon has been interviewed for news stories about transgender students, including trans women and non-binary people, at women's colleges.[3][7][9]
Poon works as a product manager at a technology company and does occasional public speaking and interviews about gender in the workplace.[8][10][11] He talks about having been perceived as both a man and a woman in the workplace, giving him a unique perspective on discrimination and sexism.[8][11] In 2019, he said that his work at IBM was undervalued before he transitioned to male, but afterwards, he was given "a seat at the table".[11] He told The Washington Post that after his transition, "People now assume I have logic, advice and seniority. They look at me and assume I know the answer, even when I don't. I've been in meetings where everyone else in the room was a woman and more senior, yet I still got asked, 'Alex, what do you think? We thought you would know.'"[8]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c O'Connell, Scott (May 7, 2014). "History made in Wellesley College's hoop-rolling tradition". The MetroWest Daily News. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
- ^ a b "THIS IS HOW WE ROLL". Wellesley News. Wellesley College. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
- ^ a b c d Padawer, Ruth (October 15, 2014). "When Women Become Men at Wellesley". The New York Times Magazine. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
- ^ "Hooprolling". Wellesley College. Retrieved 2019-11-11.
- ^ a b Sobel, Zoë (May 23, 2015). "Competitive Hoop Rolling: A Wellesley College Tradition". WBUR-FM. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
- ^ "The Honor Roll". 2014-05-04. Retrieved 2019-11-11.
- ^ a b c Waldman, Katy (June 5, 2014). "The Wellesley Man". Slate Magazine. Slate. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
- ^ a b c d Bahrampour, Tara. "Crossing the divide: Do men really have it easier? These transgender guys found the truth was more complex". Washington Post. Retrieved 2019-11-11.
- ^ "Some Colleges Revisiting Admission Policies For Transgender Students". WBEZ Chicago. NPR. November 29, 2014. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
- ^ "Poynter Fellowship conversation to answer 'How Do We Fix Work?'". YaleNews. Yale University. April 8, 2019. Retrieved December 18, 2020.
- ^ a b c Fan, Ashley (April 11, 2019). "To create equity, fix the workplace so women share power, panelists say". YaleNews. Yale University. Retrieved December 18, 2020.