Norman N. Hsu

Norman N.H. Hsu (Chinese: 徐乃星; pinyin: Xú Nǎixīng; Wade–Giles: Hsu Nai-hsing) is a Chinese American Republican politician in Southern California. From 1991 to 2011 he was a board member of the Hacienda La Puente Unified School District (HLPUSD).^[1][2]

Biography^[3]

Born in Singapore and raised in Southeast Asia, Hsu went on to Taiwan and studied political science at the National Taiwan University. After graduation, he returned to teach in Indonesia. Hsu immigrated to the United States in 1979, and was employed by the United States Postal Service in 1981. Hsu became active in organizing the Chinese American community in 1983 and began running for public office in 1987 for a seat in the HLPUSD Board of Education, which he finally won in 1991.

Over the years, Hsu had attempted unsuccessfully for higher offices, including the 1998 Republican primary of California's 60th State Assembly district^[4] and the 2003 Hacienda Heights city council (which failed to form in the incorporation measure) election.^[5] Hsu was criticized for an editorial he wrote in a Chinese newsletter during the 2003 election in which he advocated for a Chinese majority on the council, which many residents found exclusionary.^[6] The cityhood measure lost 63% to 37%.^[7]

Hsu has used staff at the school district to arrange private trips to China. In February 2011 the Public Integrity Division of the Los Angeles District Attorney's office opened an inquiry to review whether Hsu misused district resources by having a secretary at the school set up the trips.^[8] Hsu also came under criticism for initiating a Chinese language program at Cedarlane Middle School sponsored by Hanban, which is a branch of China's Ministry of Education. In February 2011 a recall drive began against Hsu and other members of the board. This recall effort was abandoned in June 2011. Hsu did not run for re-election in November 2011.

After retiring from the school board Hsu became the CEO of BELA Educational Group, which charges Chinese students to attend local high schools. In 2013 the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office launched an investigation of board members Gino Kwok and Joseph Chang regarding possible illegalities stemming from unauthorized trips to China organized by Hsu.^[9] An administrative audit^[10] conducted by the district concluded that Joseph Chang had taken trips to China paid for by Hsu to help recruit Chinese students to come Wilson High School, and that Chang had pressured administrators to accept Hsu's students even if they were unqualified.^[11] On September 27, 2013 the board voted to censure Joseph Chang for his involvement with Hsu's company, BELA. ^[12]

Hsu was tangentially linked to the 1996 United States campaign finance controversy in a 1998 investigation by the U.S. Senate. Hsu's campaign, Friends of Norman Hsu, received a $7,500 donation from Ted Sioeng, who had donated money to local campaigns in Southern California as well as Democratic national campaigns.

On May 11, 2015, the Fair Political Practices Commission levied a fine of $5,500 against Hsu for repeatedly violating campaign finance laws by disguising political attack mail as "community news". Hsu hid his identity on four different occasions in 2011 and 2013 when he sent out multi-paged political mailers to the Chinese-speaking community of Hacienda Heights and La Puente in an attempt to sway the outcome of board elections, according to a stipulation made public by the state FPPC. Hsu agreed to the facts in the case and the ruling.^[13]

References