MLK Graduate Joseph Or Takes Leadership Philosophy to Yale

Joseph Or lives by the principle “be an agent of change.” The recent graduate of Martin Luther King High School will attend Yale University in the fall, where he hopes to build on the experiences that have shaped his high school years and future goals.

From Speech and Debate tournaments to leading youth initiatives, Or spent the past four years forging a path he hopes to continue at Yale and beyond.

At King, Or was deeply involved in both Speech and Debate and Model UN. He founded the Speech and Debate Club as a freshman and served as its president throughout high school. He also led Model UN as president during his senior year. Under his leadership, the Speech and Debate team took first place in sweepstakes at the RCC Dr. Dina Stallings Tournament, earning more than $700 in awards.

Outside of school, Or led an initiative examining racial disparities in climate education across the Inland Empire and developed recommendations for more equitable curriculum design. His work contributed to the Environmental Education Collaborative, where he became the youngest credited contributor to the “Seeds to Solutions” curriculum—sponsored by the California Department of Education and currently used in schools across the state.

Or’s passion for climate justice extended into research. He conducted policy research at USC and gathered data on youth climate consciousness through UC Riverside’s Youth Health and Development Lab.

He also chaired the Riverside Youth Council and was named a 2024 Bank of America Student Leader.

Despite a long list of accolades, Or values the everyday moments that shaped his high school experience—whether traveling for summits, preparing for competitions, or navigating challenges in leadership roles.

“From learning to lead in my early high school years to learning how to balance work, self-care, and my social life, I’m steadily growing into the person I aspire to be,” Or said. “I really value that idea of non-linear, but continuous self-improvement.”

At Yale, Or plans to major in Ethics, Politics, and Economics on the pre-law track. While he has an initial direction in mind, he hopes to explore widely and discover where his deepest passions lie.

As he prepares to begin this new chapter, Or hopes other students recognize their own potential to lead and shape their futures.

“Everyone has their own path, so strive to pave your own, and don’t compare your path to others,” Or said. “When an opportunity doesn’t exist, don’t be afraid to create it for yourself. Be an agent of initiative and change; don’t keep waiting for someone else to open doors for you.”

By Erik Chen