Help Royce Pursue His Dream at Columbia University

Xiang Cai (Royce), 35, was born deaf and has spent his life in a small farming village in Bao Ying County, Jiangsu, China. His elderly parents can no longer work, and the family relies on a few acres of land. Life has never been easy, but Xiang never let hardship silence his dreams.

Since 2016, Xiang has been teaching himself computer programming and English through free online courses – most with imperfect captions generated by speech recognition. With no special support for deaf learners, he spent nights studying after farm work, cooking, and caring for his parents. Step by step, he mastered Python, C++, and Java, and earned a near-perfect ACT score of 35 and 28/30 in TOEFL Reading. His efforts paid off: he was admitted to Columbia University’s School of General Studies – an Ivy League school with an internation acceptance rate under 20%.

Beyond his talents, Xiang is defined by his generosity. He helped create a communication app that supports over 200,000 users with hearing impairments in their daily lives and studies. He also uses his skills to improve the accessibility of local websites and teaches sign language and programming in his community.

Now, Xiang faces his next challenge: financing his first year at Columbia. Our goal is to raise $55,528 to cover tuition, housing, textbooks, and basic living expenses. Every donation will go directly toward helping Xiang turn years of quiet perseverance into the opportunity he has worked so hard to earn.

Xiang’s journey is one of courage, kindness, and unwavering determination in learning. By supporting him, you’re not only helping one student, you’re helping a remarkable person continue to build hopes for the deaf community.

Together, let’s give Xiang the chance to shine.