Mina Chang

Mina Chang (born October 29, 1984)[1] is an American singer, activist, and former government official. She served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the United States Department of State's Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations from April 2019 until her resignation on November 18, 2019, after NBC News reported that she had falsified her resume with multiple false or misleading claims about her education, charity work, and that she had appeared on a Time magazine cover. Chang also failed to mention that her non-profit had its status revoked.[2][3]

Mina Chang
Head shot of Chang in front of the U.S. flag. She is wearing a black suit jacket, white shirt with top button undone, with long brown-highlighted black hair flowing on her right-hand shoulder.
Born
Mina Chang

(1984-10-29) October 29, 1984
Known forPolitical appointee of Donald Trump at the State Department

Early life and education

Chang, a Korean-American,[4] claims to be the child of two Salvation Army officers and allegedly spent her childhood in Atlanta.[5] In a May 2014 interview, Chang claimed to hold a degree in international development from the University of Hawaiʻi, concentrating on mission work and aid practices.[6] The university, however, publicly stated days later that it does not have a Mina Chang of her age in their records and does not offer a "degree in international development."[7] However, she did attend a university in Hawaii called the University of the Nations, an unaccredited Christian educational institution that specializes in International Development or cross-cultural missions.[8]

She completed a seven-week program through Harvard Business School's Advanced Management Program (AMP).[9]

Career

Prior to 2010, Chang performed as a pop singer, touring internationally and recording albums in both English and Korean.[5] During this time she did volunteer work in relief efforts, which led to her joining the Korea-based nonprofit "Linking the World". Somewhere between 2012 and 2014, she purportedly became the president and CEO of the nonprofit, consolidating and relocating its offices to Dallas.[5]

Chang at New America's Future of War Conference 2017

In January 2017, Chang spoke at the Asia Society Texas Center's Women's Leadership Series as a featured guest. Writer Kimberly Chuck called Chang a "renowned humanitarian".[10]

On January 16, 2019, the Trump administration nominated Chang to be the Assistant Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development.[11] The nomination was withdrawn on September 9, 2019.[2][11][12]

On April 29, 2019, Chang was appointed Deputy Assistant Secretary in the U.S. State Department's Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations,[13] and stepped down from her president and CEO positions at Linking the World.[14]

In July 2019, Town & Country and The Philippine Star speculated that Chang may become the next United States Ambassador to the Philippines, although that prediction did not come to fruition.[15][16]

Falsification of resume

On November 12, 2019, NBC News reported that Chang had "embellished her résumé with misleading claims about her professional background" prior to joining the United States Department of State. She claimed to be an alumna of Harvard Business School, which the school verified as correct, through the completion of a non-degree certificate course.[9] NBC News accused her of falsely claiming to be a former chief of staff of a nonprofit (INGO), to have had a role on a UN panel, and to have appeared on the front cover of Time magazine.[2][17][18] The NBC News report also states that she claimed to have spoken at both Democratic and Republican national conventions, and that her resume implies she had testified before Congress.[19][20]

Chang's fake Time magazine cover

Chang displayed a fake cover of Time magazine to a videotaped January 2017 interview with journalist Mary Sit produced by Houston Community College's show, Global Outlook.[21][22] In response to the interviewer's question: "Here you are on Time magazine, congratulations! Tell me about this cover and how this came to be?" Chang represented the cover as genuine and replied: "We started using drone technology in disaster response, and so that was when the whole talk of how is technology being used to save lives in disaster response scenarios... and I suppose I brought some attention to that".[23]

Chang's State Department biography remained unchanged following the NBC News report until it was removed on November 18, 2019. It claimed that she was an "alumna of the Harvard Business School" and held undergraduate degrees from Southern Methodist University and the University of the Nations, an unaccredited Christian school with volunteer teachers. Chang also claimed to be a graduate of the United States Army War College National Security Seminar, a Harvard John F. Kennedy School of Government Senior Executive in National and International Security, and a former International Security Fellow at New America.[13][18]

Resignation from the State Department

On November 18, 2019, Chang resigned from her role at the United States Department of State.[7] In her resignation letter, Chang claimed that "character assassination based solely on innuendo was launched against me attacking my credentials and character. My superiors at the Department refused to defend me, stand up for the truth or allow me to answer the false charges against me."[7][3]

Personal life

Mina Chang is married to Jake Harriman. Harriman is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and served in the Marine Corps. He founded Nuru International. Chang has a daughter named Trinity from her previous marriage.[24]

Discography

Albums
Title Album details Ref.
Mina Chang: The Holiday Album [25][2]

References
  1. The month and date can be found on this Instagram picture published by Chang on her birthday: "Mina Chang on Instagram: "Spent my birthday at Stanford University giving remarks about the importance of resiliency and positive peace. Discussion with Assistant…"". Instagram. October 29, 2019. Archived from the original on November 18, 2019. Retrieved November 18, 2019., and her birth year: Kika, Thomas (November 13, 2019). "Who Is Mina Chang? Meet The Trump Staffer Caught In A Web Of Resume Lies". International Business Times. Archived from the original on November 15, 2019. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  2. De Luce, Dan; Strickler, Laura; Sen, Ari (November 12, 2019). "Senior Trump official embellished résumé, had face on fake Time cover". NBC News. Archived from the original on November 12, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  3. Lippman, Daniel (November 18, 2019). "State Department staffer resigns after allegations she inflated her resume". Politico. Archived from the original on November 19, 2019. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  4. Arin, Kim (January 17, 2019). "Trump names Korean-American woman as USAID assistant administrator". The Korea Herald. Archived from the original on November 13, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  5. Smart, Lauren (June 26, 2014). "Singer-Turned-Activist Mina Chang Now Faces the Biggest Challenge of Her Life". Dallas Observer. Archived from the original on November 13, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  6. "Mom Next Door: Mina Chang". DFWChild. May 29, 2012. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  7. De Luce, Dan; Strickler, Laura; Sen, Ari (November 18, 2019). "Senior Trump admin official Mina Chang resigns after NBC News report". NBC News. Archived from the original on November 19, 2019. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  8. Diaz, Geneva (November 20, 2019). "Mina Chang falsified resume with UH degree". Ka Leo O Hawaiʻi. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  9. De Luce, Dan; Strickler, Laura; Sen, Ari (2019-11-27). "How did Mina Chang get a State Department job in the first place?". NBC News. Retrieved 2020-05-08. "She attended Harvard Business School's Advanced Management Program, which 'has no formal education requirements' and charges applicants $82,000 for a seven-week course. The program permits people who have finished the program to call themselves alumni, and creates an opportunity for them to tap into the Harvard alumni network."
  10. Chuck, Kimberly (January 2017). "Asia Society Texas Center's Women's Leadership Series Featuring Mina Chang" (PDF). Asia Society. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
  11. "PN115 — Mina Chang — United States Agency for International Development". Congress.gov. Library of Congress. 9 September 2019. Archived from the original on November 12, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  12. "Seventeen Nominations and Two Withdrawals Sent to the Senate". whitehouse.gov. September 9, 2019. Archived from the original on January 20, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2019 – via National Archives.
  13. "Mina Chang". United States Department of State. Archived from the original on November 17, 2019. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  14. Branham, Dana (November 12, 2019). "Dallas' Mina Chang, a Trump official, used fake magazine cover to tout nonprofit work, NBC News finds". The Dallas Morning News. Archived from the original on November 13, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  15. Lazatin, Hannah (July 10, 2019). "Talk of the Town: Could this Harvard Graduate Be the Next U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines?". Town & Country. Archived from the original on August 31, 2019. Retrieved November 17, 2019.
  16. Lee-Brago, Pia (July 10, 2019). "Chang eyed as next US envoy to Philippines". The Philippine Star. Archived from the original on November 17, 2019. Retrieved November 17, 2019.
  17. Noor, Poppy (November 12, 2019). "Trump official inflated résumé, report reveals – and created fake Time cover". The Guardian. Archived from the original on November 12, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  18. Woodward, Alex (November 12, 2019). "Senior Trump official Mina Chang 'faked Time magazine cover and inflated claims in CV'". The Independent. Archived from the original on November 13, 2019. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
  19. Read, Bridget (November 12, 2019). "Unfortunately, I Love the State Department Scammer". The Cut. Archived from the original on November 13, 2019. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  20. "Legislative Search Results". Congress.gov. Archived from the original on September 19, 2019. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  21. Pine, D.W. (June 28, 2017). "How To Tell a Fake TIME Cover From a Real One". Time. Archived from the original on November 16, 2019. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  22. Mina Chang Videos (May 12, 2017). "Global Outlook Interview with Mary Sit, January 2017". YouTube. Archived from the original on November 16, 2019. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  23. Branham, Dana (November 18, 2019). "Dallas' Mina Chang, a Trump official, used fake magazine cover to tout nonprofit work, NBC News finds". The Dallas Morning News. Archived from the original on November 13, 2019. Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  24. November 13, Caroline John-Published; pm, 2019 at 5:43 am | Last Updated: at 12:23 (2019-11-13). "Mina Chang Wiki, Age, Husband & Facts About the State Department Official with the Fake Time Cover". Earn The Necklace. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
  25. "The Holiday Album by Mina Chang". Apple Music. Archived from the original on November 17, 2019. Retrieved November 17, 2019.
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