Motherhood at Stanford

PhD candidate Tina Cheuk and her daughter (Image credit: Courtesy Tina Cheuk)

Graduate School of Education PhD candidate Tina Cheuk, MA ’07, returned to Stanford in 2014 when her daughter, Alexandria, was just an infant. Since then, the two have celebrated many milestones together – from Alexandria’s first steps and starting preschool to Cheuk advancing to candidacy and preparing for her defense. Soon, they’ll celebrate another achievement.

“Now, both of us are graduating,” said Cheuk. “Preschool for her, and PhD for me.”

Over the past five years, the mom and daughter have made plenty of memories at Stanford, including attending the Cardinal Ballet Company’s performance of The Nutcracker with other families. One of Cheuk’s favorite parenting moments at Stanford was taking Alexandria to the provost’s residence for this year’s Easter Egg Roll.

“Alexandria had such a fun time hunting for eggs, getting her face painted and exploring the gardens,” she said. “Afterward, I took her to Green Library, where she did a bit of fountain hopping, which was probably her favorite part of the day.”

Cheuk is honest about the challenges of being a busy student and parent. She acknowledges she has shed tears because of the difficulties and exhaustion of trying to meet high academic standards while juggling the newness of motherhood. To manage it all, while at school, she focuses 100 percent on her scholarship, mentoring and teaching. But as soon as she gets home, her focus shifts to her role as mom.

“Compartmentalizing has helped me lessen the guilt I feel for not doing enough in either,” she said. “I’m still learning how to be my full authentic self, in these new roles, as both an emerging scholar and a new parent.”

Cheuk is currently researching how language and culture support science learning for linguistically diverse learners. She’s also researching ways to use this knowledge to create more equitable educational learning opportunities for all students. Last year, she co-wrote and published her first book, Preparing English Learners for College and Career. After leaving Stanford, she’ll be an assistant professor in science education at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo.

Cheuk, who co-founded Mothers in Academia and the Stanford Student Parent Alliance, offers a reassuring message and advice for other parents facing the demands of kids and school: “You are not alone. Find your people, build your community, and ask for help.”