Helen V. Chou is the Senior Manager of International Services at the Houston Public Library, which serves Houston’s international communities, immigrants, and refugees from the Library’s 43 locations across the city. Born and raised in Houston, she is passionate about the power of Houston’s diversity, and the opportunity to make Houston home for people from all backgrounds and nations. HPL’s International Services partners to address community needs, providing programs such as free English and Citizenship classes, and community conversations that build understanding and cohesion toward a strong and united city. Ms. Chou has focused her career in public service and economic development, with experience in government, private, and non-profit sectors across Asia, the U.S., and Africa. Before joining the Library, she served five years with the Singapore government as part of the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), where she co-led the International Organisations Programme Office, supporting international non-profit organizations to expand operations across Asia. Prior to EDB, Ms. Chou served as Chief Operating Officer of the Singapore office for the award-winning Philippine-based social enterprise Gawad Kalinga (GK). Before her time in Singapore, she worked in financial services in New York for management consulting firm Oliver Wyman. In Houston, Helen serves on the Mayor's Advisory Council for New Americans and Immigrant Communities, and has served on the Advisory Council of Refugee Services of Texas. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Economics and East Asian Studies from Harvard University, and a dual-Masters of International Affairs and Public Policy from Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs, and the National University of Singapore Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.