How Curiosity As An Adoptee & Foster Created A Movement | Grace Yung Foster | TEDxMontgomery College
Quick Overview
Grace Yung, an adoptee and former foster child, built a movement to advocate for better representation and resources for people with similar backgrounds by taking intentional actions: valuing herself, letting go of limiting narratives, and fighting for change, which led to her becoming a CEO and founder.
Key Points: Grace Yung, an adoptee and former foster youth who spent time in orphanages in South Korea before being adopted in 1998, experienced homelessness, economic hardship, and mental health issues. Statistics show that foster care alumni face significant challenges, including lower high school and college graduation rates compared to the general population. A study revealed that 46% of respondents felt invisible in the workplace, only 10% agreed there were career resources for them, and 24% felt belonging as an adoptee or foster. 92% of respondents want a professional platform for adoptees and fosters, highlighting the need for targeted career resources. Yung overcame feelings of worthlessness and lack of belonging by refusing to let her past dictate her future, deciding she held the power to create the life and future she wanted. Her three intentional actions for change are: 1) Repeat, 'I am valuable because I am a human being'; 2) Let go of whatever is not serving you anymore; and 3) Fight for yourself - take one action. Yung's actions led to her building a successful career, earning an MBA from NYU, and founding a movement to create opportunities and representation for adoptees and fosters.
Context: Grace Yung delivers a TEDx talk titled "Unlocking A Curious Mind" at Montgomery College, sharing her deeply personal journey as an adoptee and former foster youth. She contrasts the statistical hardships faced by those who age out of foster care with her own successful outcome (CEO & Founder in 2025), emphasizing the importance of self-advocacy and creating intentional change to overcome limiting societal narratives.
Detailed Analysis
Grace Yung shares her story as an adoptee and former foster youth who spent time in South Korean orphanages before being adopted in 1998. She highlights the difficult statistics facing foster care alumni, such as lower educational attainment, homelessness risk (nearly 30% facing homelessness), mental health issues, and trouble with law enforcement (30%). She contrasts these statistics with her own achievements, including earning an MBA from NYU and becoming a CEO/founder by 2025. Yung reveals the results of a study showing that 46% of respondents felt invisible at work, only 10% found relevant career resources, and 92% desired a professional platform tailored to adoptees and fosters. She explains that her personal struggle involved internalizing narratives of worthlessness tied to her family story and being separated from her birth family. To combat this, she adopted three intentional actions: 1) Repeating the affirmation, 'I am valuable because I am a human being'; 2) Letting go of what no longer serves her; and 3) Fighting for herself by taking one proactive step. She concludes that by empowering herself through these actions, she was able to build the future she wanted and create a movement to support others in similar circumstances.