How important is your name?

A Chinese student Americanized her name to fit in. But it took more to feel she belonged [View this email online]( [NPR Education]( April 17, 2022 This week, we looked at a college podcast about identity, a senate investigation into a student loan program and an uptick in “Don’t Say Gay” bills. Plus, 6 podcasts that offer a glimpse into kids' minds. --------------------------------------------------------------- Mohamed Sadek for NPR Happy Sunday, Aria Young didn't become Aria Young until she was 16 years old. She was moving to Lancaster, Pa., from her home in Shanghai for high school. Her Chinese name, 杨沁悦, or Yáng Qìn Yuè, was "too hard for the English tongue to pronounce," Young explains in "What's in a Name," her entry for NPR's College Podcast Challenge. Judges selected Young's audio story as the grand-prize winner from 10 finalists. In the [podcast]( Young, now a sophomore at New York University, tries to coach her English-speaking friends through pronouncing her Chinese name correctly. It doesn't go well. "Imagine doing that on the first day of school in front of a classroom of people, or at a party correcting every person you meet because they just can't get it right," Young says in her [podcast](. She knew it would be easier to make a home for herself in the U.S. if people could say her name. It takes more than a new name to feel you belong Taking an English name is not an uncommon practice among Asian international students. As one of Young's old high school teachers explains in the podcast, "The [international] students from Spain and the students from Italy kept their names. The students from Asia did not keep their names. There might have been maybe one student in the five years I was there who kept their Chinese name. Everybody had an American name." After hours looking through lists of baby names, Young settled on Aria because it reflected her hopes for her new life in the United States. "It's a musical term. [An aria] is like a song," she tells NPR. "It's almost like my new life is going to be melodic." But changing her name didn't necessarily mean she fit in at her new Catholic high school in the middle of Pennsylvania Dutch Country. "Being Asian was not really accepted or appreciated," she explains. Young says she and other Asian international students faced microaggressions and racism at their new school. "People would come up to us and ask us if we eat dogs," she recalls. "People would come up to me and ask questions about, you know, 'What's it like being Asian?' As if they've never seen an Asian person before." Still, she was determined to belong, and a big part of that meant assimilating into American culture. "I rejected my name. Rejected Yáng Qìn Yuè. Rejected my Asianness, because I felt like that was all I was," Young says in her podcast. --------------------------------------------------------------- Newsletter continues after sponsor message --------------------------------------------------------------- Four years into her life in the U.S., Young has realized she wants more balance between the two halves of herself — Yáng Qìn Yuè from Shanghai and Aria of New York City. She's grappling with how to honor her Chinese identity while continuing to build a life for herself in the United States. She says that's why she made "What's in a Name." A name to reflect where she's going and where she has been In her [podcast]( which Young recorded at her college radio station, she tells the story behind her given name: Her parents used the Chinese characters for "water" and "heart" in hopes that she would be "gentle, pure and nurturing like water," as well as have "a brave and kind heart." For a long time, her Americanized name, Aria, didn't feel as meaningful to her. But now, she says, "this life in the States — that's important to me. And these people know me as Aria. So this name has meaning to me because there are people I care about here that know me as this name." She feels like her Americanized name is a piece of herself that she has power over — it's a way for her to shape the person she wants to be. "I chose this name by myself, for myself. And this is the person I made myself to be," she says. "In a way, I think it's liberating." As she continues to find her footing in the U.S., her old name feels further and further away. But her last name, Young, doesn't feel quite right anymore. "That's me as my parents' daughter. Not just my mom's daughter but also my dad's daughter, and that kind of bothers me a little bit," she confesses. Young says that her relationship with her dad is strained and that she was primarily raised by "two very, very strong and resilient women" — her mom and her grandmother. She wants to take her mother's maiden name, Xu, as a way to honor her mom's role in her life. It's one more step toward building a home for herself in the U.S. while still paying tribute to where she came from. — [Sequoia Carrillo]( Assistant Editor, NPR Ed Now, let’s get into some news… Senators call for probe into student loan program after NPR unearthed major problems. More than 9 million borrowers are currently enrolled in income-driven repayment (IDR) plans, which are designed to help people who cannot afford to make large monthly payments. The plans promise loan cancellation after 20-25 years. But documents obtained by NPR offer striking evidence that these plans have been badly mismanaged by loan servicers and the U.S. Department of Education. [Read more](. — [Sequoia Carrillo]( Assistant Editor, NPR Ed Researchers explore an unlikely treatment for cognitive disorders: video games. The neurologist said Pam Stevens' cognitive impairment couldn't be treated. After suffering a stroke in 2014, the 85-year-old wasn't responding to medication. She and her husband, Pete Stevens, were told to give up hope. Enter Neurogrow: Morimoto's gardening video game is designed to target and enhance the functioning of neural circuitry. Their hope is that an aging brain, when exposed to the program, would eventually respond better to medication like anti-depressants. Video games distract, amuse, and inspire. But Morimoto's research asks the question: Can they heal? [Read more](. — Keller Gordon, Reporter Not just Florida. More than a dozen states propose so-called 'Don't Say Gay' bills. First Florida. Then Alabama. Now, lawmakers in Ohio and Louisiana are considering legislation that mimics the Florida law. And Texas Gov. Greg Abbott says he'll make a similar bill a top priority at the next session. Across the United States, at least a dozen states are considering new legislation that in several ways will mirror Florida's new controversial law, referred to by some opponents as "Don't Say Gay." [Read more](. — Dustin Jones, Newsdesk & Jonathan Franklin, Newsdesk And before you, let's get inside the mind of kid… LA Johnson/NPR From a molasses flood to 'Titanic,' 6 podcasts that offer a glimpse into kids' minds. From discussions about teen mental health to explorations on the possibility of alien life, the 2022 Student Podcast Challenge offers a glimpse into the mind of kids and teens from across the country. This year, the contest received well over 7,500 minutes of podcasting from 45 states and the District of Columbia. While all the entries spotlight a different topic, one thing is clear: we need to listen to kids more often – and we don't often get the chance to. Your opportunity to discover what they've got to say [starts here](. See you next week. --------------------------------------------------------------- Listen to your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to find your local station stream. [Listen Live]( [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [Twitter]( What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: [npred@npr.org](mailto:npred@npr.org?subject=Newsletter%20Feedback) Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! [They can sign up here.]( Looking for more great content? [Check out all of our newsletter offerings]( — including Music, Politics, Code Switch and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to Education emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 [Unsubscribe]( | [Privacy Policy]( [NPR logo]