Hsakushee Daisy Zan

Hsakushee Daisy Zan works with the Office of Multilingual Learning for Saint Paul Public Schools and is pursuing a graduate degree in K-12 School Counseling at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. She sits on the board of the Rice and Larpenteur Alliance, and previously worked in state and local government as a political organizer and served as a board member for the Karen Organization of Minnesota. She is also currently involved in the Coalition on Asian American Leaders as well as with Karen families in families in St. Paul schools. 

 

Ms. Zan was born in Myanmar (formerly Burma) and grew up in a Karen refugee camp in Thailand. She has lived in Minnesota for more than 14 years. As an immigrant and a refugee, educational opportunities and economic development are the top priorities she brings to the Council Board. 

 

In addition to working and pursuing her degree, Ms. Zan enjoys cooking both traditional and non-traditional meals for her family, watching historical dramas, and traveling. Having made Minnesota her chosen home, she aspires to create a better future for those who live here. 

 

 

The Karen are the second-largest ethnic nationality group from Myanmar (formerly Burma). Since 1949, many Karen areas have been subject to government insurgency and, often, persecution. Karen, pronounced “kah-ren,” is an English pronunciation of the Burmese word “Kayin.” Today, an estimated 12,000 Karen make Minnesota their home, and secondary migration continues to bring more Karen from elsewhere in the United States to Minnesota to reunite with their families. Read more about the Karen in the Council’s Emerging Community Report.