Candidate for
Mayor; City of Irvine

About Irvine Mayor Steven Choi Irvine Mayor Steven Choi

Steven Choi was elected Mayor of Irvine in 2012. He was elected to the Irvine City Council for the first time in 2004 and re-elected to a second term in 2008. Previously, he was elected as a Trustee of the Irvine Unified School District in 1998 and re-elected in 2002.

Steven is a passionate and experienced educator. After earning his bachelor's degree from Kyung Hee University in Seoul, South Korea, he immigrated to the United States as a Peace Corps language instructor for the State Department in August, 1968. He then continued his post-graduate studies, earning his master's degree in Library Science from Louisiana State University, and his Ph.D. in Library and Information Science at the University of Pittsburgh. Since then, he resumed his teaching career, primarily in higher education at several universities and colleges including USC, UCI, California State University, Los Angeles, Henderson State University in Arkansas, Saddleback College, and most recently, Coastline Community College.

In many ways, Steven's vision for the City is to maintain and improve the quality of life for its citizens by assuring responsible growth, effectively managing traffic, keeping Irvine as one of America's safest cities, and providing quality education for our children, while ensuring the City's fiscal stability and growth.

Irvine's cultural and ethnic diversity and harmony serves as a very important role on Steven's agenda. Enthusiastic about expanding Irvine's cultural diversity, he has organized and participated in many largescale city events such as the Irvine Global Village Festival and Korean American Day Festival. He also values Irvine's wonderful assets comprising of its aesthetic beauty, high standard of living, and high intellectual standards. Most importantly, he is strongly aware of the importance of listening to the voices of Irvine residents. He sends out highlights of the City's news via his eNewsletter on a steady basis, encouraging residents to get involved by asking for their opinions on particular issues and proposals discussed at the City Council Meetings.

Hoping to provide a sufficient educational and desirable experience for Irvine residents, he is exceptionally committed to supporting programs for children and senior citizens. Steven has contributed to Irvine's education as the founder and director of highly academically successful Dr. Choi's Academy. The Academy focuses on providing tutoring and academic enrichment programs for students. Along side Steven, his wife, Janie, has also been serving Irvine children over 21 years with Kumon Math and Reading academic program.

In addition to his City Council appointments, Steven is a member of the Concordia University President's Advisory Council and Irvine Library Advisory committee. Steven is also Irvine's key representative on the Orange County Public Library Advisory Board, the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) Board, Orange County Council of Governments (OCCOG) Board, Association of California Cities-Orange County (ACC-OC) Board, and Orange County Great Park Board.

Since 1993, Steven has lived in Irvine with his wife, Janie, and their two children, Daniel and Michelle, who attended Eastshore Elementary, Lakeside Middle School, Rancho Middle School, and University High School. Daniel received his BS from Stanford University and his MD from UCSD. He is now a Fellow physician at Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle, Washington. Michelle received her BA from UCSD and her JD from the University of Michigan Law School. She is currently practicing business law in the City of Irvine.