This is a website of The Office of Justin Chen. Contact the office.
Administration
Former President and Vice President of MLK Middle School, founder and chair of The Chen Group, and student advocate working to expand opportunity across SFUSD.
Who is Justin Chen
Justin is a natural leader with unflappable dedication, thoughtful empathy, and visionary thinking. He believes leadership is not about authority but service: opening doors, lifting others, and building spaces where all students feel noticed and cared for.
As a student government leader, Justin focused on listening to students, strengthening access to resources, and making student government more transparent and useful for the entire school community.
Justin Chen’s leadership journey began humbly yet ambitiously as Vice President of MLK Middle School. Witnessing firsthand the challenges students faced-from outdated resources to limited platforms for student voices-Justin knew change was needed. He took initiative and founded the Justin Chen Executive Board, a pioneering advisory board that brought together passionate student leaders committed to reforming their school community.
This board became the cornerstone of student advocacy, working closely with Justin to push for transparency, inclusivity, and safety. When Justin became School President in 2024, he reshaped the board into The Chen Group, transforming it from an advisory group into an organization dedicated to student empowerment and educational innovation.
Our Chair / Former President of MLK Middle School delivered remarks on the opening of MLK's New Sports Hub / Field. Next to him are the America Scores Director, Bay Area Host Committee CEO, Mayor Lurie (Mayor of San Francisco), and Mr. Fechter (Principal of MLK).
Featuring Quote From His Movie: 546 Days
By: Justin W. Chen人生很短，短到来不及等待别人给你答案。
如果你心里有光，就不要让犹豫把它熄灭。
与其害怕失败，不如害怕从未真正活过。
当有一天回头看时，至少可以骄傲地说——我拼尽全力活过。
Life is short—so short that there isn’t time to wait for others to give you the answers.
If there is light within you, don’t let hesitation extinguish it.
Instead of fearing failure, fear a life that was never truly lived.
And when the day comes to look back, at the very least you can say with pride—
I lived with everything I had.
Public Service
Justin delivered remarks at the MLK Field of Dreams inaugural ceremony alongside school and city leaders, including Principal Fechter and Mayor Lurie. His leadership brought student voice into major campus moments and helped make student government more visible.
Resources
Our Chair and Former President of MLK & Vice President of MLK officially and successfully advocated for 50k for new Chromebooks, and he said, "This is a major investment and thank you to our school principal and SFUSD for letting us upgrade and enhance the students' learning experience." - Justin Chen
District Advocacy
Justin Chen met with Mr. Phil Kim, the current board of education president, and also one of the former commissioners of the BOE. Justin presented his project on the school bonds of Proposition 2. This was his project for the Election night! It was an honor to meet Mr. Kim!
Community
Our Chair, Former School President, and Vice President meet with Mayor Lurie during the grand opening of the new sports hub at MLK Middle School! Thank you, Mayor Lurie, for your support, and thank you for coming to our event!
Agenda 24/25
Justin Chen's signature project, Agenda 24/25, was conceived through his deep commitment to addressing the true interests of the students in MLK Middle School. This agenda touched on the key areas of mental health services, academic support, student engagement, and school safety. By carefully listening to the voices of students, faculty suggestions, and community opinions, Justin developed an agenda that was not a list of promises but an actionable plan for change.
Under his leadership, Agenda 24/25 was able to effectively execute programs that saw tangible returns: securing a $50,000 budget for new Chromebooks to bridge the digital divide, creating the first-ever student government website in SFUSD middle schools to enhance communication and transparency, and organizing inclusive school events like improved carnivals and the AAPI celebration night that led to a higher level of community.
Formed the advisory group that became the foundation for Justin’s student leadership team.
Led Agenda 24/25, expanded transparency, strengthened events, and advanced student-success advocacy.
Continuing advocacy for students across San Francisco Unified School District through equity-focused programs.
The Chen Group
The Chen Group grew from a student advisory board into a platform for student empowerment, leadership development, education innovation, and equity-focused advocacy. Its programs include Chen Leadership, Opportunity For All, Clean Green Initiative, Justin For Justice, Appreciation Task Force, and Equity in Education For All.
Final Word
Justin Chen's leadership path is a vision, commitment, and measurable results story. From creating a student advisory board as vice president to serving as the leader of The Chen Group as an organization leading education reform, Justin is the epitome of the characteristics of a transformational leader.
His work demonstrates that true leadership is serving others-creating opportunity, fostering inclusion, and preparing students to be agents of change. Justin's legacy will continue on as a more equitable, active, and thriving student body not just at MLK but in San Francisco public schools overall.
The students selected me to impact and bring genuine reform, and that's what I did. I promised, and I kept my promises (promises made, promises kept). Every decision I made was intentional: to lift, to listen, and to serve with integrity. My experience was not just about leadership; it was about showing that student voices matter and that collectively, we could do better-for today, and for tomorrow." — Justin Chen, former President of MLK Middle School