Andrew Li

Event planner, Foodie, Student, World traveler

Andrew Li is a rising senior at Conestoga High School in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, where he serves as President of Conestoga DECA, the largest DECA chapter in Pennsylvania with over 700 members. He is passionate about the intersection of business, food, and hospitality, and has built a track record of leadership, competitive achievement, and community impact throughout high school. As Director of Community Service for Conestoga DECA during his junior year, Andrew organized the school's first-ever Rise Against Hunger meal packaging event, a six-month initiative that required raising over $4,100 through restaurant fundraisers with Panera Bread, Chipotle, Chick-fil-A, Shake Shack, MOD Pizza, and Habit Burger Grill, securing approximately $2,500 in Topgolf contributions, coordinating with school administration, partnering with Key Club and National Honor Society, and leading promotional campaigns across multiple school platforms. On March 6, 2026, nearly 80 volunteers came together to pack 10,000 meals for communities facing food insecurity around the world. Andrew is a three-year DECA competitor in Restaurant and Food Service Management. He earned 1st place at the district level and 2nd place in the state of Pennsylvania, qualifying for the International Career Development Conference (ICDC) in Atlanta, where he earned the top roleplay score in his event among over 25,000 competing students from across the globe. His competitive progression, from qualifying for states as a freshman, to placing at states as a sophomore, to competing internationally as a junior, reflects the persistence and dedication he brings to everything he pursues. Outside of DECA, Andrew serves as a High School Ambassador for TEDxPenn, the student-led TEDx conference at the University of Pennsylvania, where he works on the S&C / Operations team analyzing and improving the end-to-end attendee experience. He is also the incoming President of TEDxStoga, his school's TEDx chapter. Andrew's passion for food extends well beyond the classroom. He runs a food-focused Instagram account (@andrewlovefood) and built an interactive restaurant recommendation website (whereandrewwouldeat.netlify.app), drawing from a personal Google Maps collection of over 900 saved restaurants worldwide. He has planned and executed a 10-restaurant food tour of New York City in a single day and completed an exclusive kitchen tour at Eleven Madison Park, a three-Michelin-star restaurant. His AP Research project studies the Michelin Effect, analyzing how Michelin Guide recognition impacts Yelp review patterns using difference-in-differences methodology and Python-based sentiment analysis. Andrew's professional experience includes working at Tous Les Jours Bakery as a head cashier, barista, shift lead, and employee trainer, and serving as a Sous Chef and Student Instructor at the Wayne Arts Center, where he taught culinary classes across French, German, Italian, and Asian cuisines. He is a student member of the American Culinary Federation and the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, and is currently completing Harvard University's edX Professional Certificate in The Science of Cooking. Andrew maintains a 4.0 unweighted GPA and a 5.10 weighted GPA. He is a National Honor Society inductee, AP Scholar Award recipient, and a 10-year competitive pianist who has performed twice at Carnegie Hall. This summer, he will attend business programs at UPenn Wharton, UC Berkeley, the University of British Columbia, and Penn State.

Food. Not just eating it, but understanding it. I am passionate about how restaurants create experiences, how a chef's philosophy shapes a menu, and how food brings people together across cultures and backgrounds. I have 900+ restaurants saved on Google Maps, I run a food-focused Instagram account and a restaurant recommendation website, and I planned a 10-restaurant food tour of New York City with my dad where we walked the entire city from 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. I secured a kitchen tour at Eleven Madison Park, a three-Michelin-star restaurant, and my AP Research project studies how Michelin recognition changes consumer behavior on Yelp. This passion drives my leadership. I am the incoming President of Conestoga DECA (deca.org), the largest club at our school and the largest DECA chapter in Pennsylvania. Last month, I competed at the International Career Development Conference in Atlanta, where over 25,000 students gathered, and earned the top roleplay score in Restaurant and Food Service Management. As Director of Community Service this past year, I organized six restaurant fundraisers to raise over $4,100 for a meal packaging event where 80 volunteers packed 10,000 meals. Food is how I connect with people, explore the world, and think about business.

"The Secret Ingredients of Great Hospitality" by Will Guidara

My experience with TED began as a High School Ambassador for TEDxPenn, a student-led conference hosted at the University of Pennsylvania that brings together speakers, innovators, and thinkers to share ideas that spark conversation and new perspectives. Working within the Strategy & Curation / Operations team, I focus on analyzing and improving the end-to-end attendee experience for the event. My work examines how operational design, from mobile ticketing and QR check-in systems to lobby activation spaces and interactive installations, can transform the event from a sequence of talks into a cohesive and immersive experience. This includes developing proposals around arrival flow, audience engagement, pre-event activation zones, and thematic installations that reinforce the event's theme and encourage attendees to participate rather than simply observe. Being part of the team behind one of the largest student-run TEDx conferences in the country has given me a real understanding of what makes a TEDx event resonate, not just on stage, but in every moment surrounding it. More recently, I was asked to help revive our school's TEDx chapter at Conestoga High School, and I was selected by the founding board to serve as President of TEDxStoga Youth. The opportunity to bring everything I have learned from TEDxPenn to a high school setting, while building something new with my own community, is exactly what excites me about organizing this event.