Morning Star Institute (MSI) offers classes in mathematics (AMC), literature,
and fortunate enough to host Beyond Chess group lessons by IM Ben Deng and WIM Sarah Lu in Irvine .
The MSI team developed its own curriculum, including the series MSI math textbooks.
All instructors at MSI hold Ph.D. (including professors) or Master's Degree in the area they teach.
Regular in-person and online classes limit to 15 students (writing has no more than 6 students each class).
Learning support system include daily homework and practice, TA-led office hours, etc.
MSI math textbooks are posted online and open to the public.
Students are welcome to use them to establish their math knowledge system.
MSI free Community Service Programs and Classes include:
summer practices for the past 3 years; AMC8, AMC10 and AMC12 mock tests;
each year's 6th Grade Math Placement Test Workshop and GATE / APAAS Prep Workshop;
Calculus Introductory Class; Advanced Geometry Class;
Computer Science Competition Team (ACSL) Coaching; College Application Workshop, etc.
Free classes and homework solution videos are posted online for students to enjoy and study.
Our Team
Co-founder: Jun Wang
Ms. Wang graduated from Peking University, received her master's degree from UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. Her work has been published by New America Media, PBS NewsHour, Orange County Register Magazine and the China Daily, where she served as the founding Los Angeles bureau chief.
Co-founder: Dr. Yifeng Yu
In 1994, Dr. Yu won first prize (national level) in China 's National High School Math Competition. He graduated from Nankai University's special math class founded by S.S.Chern; received his PH.D degree from University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Yu is a math professor at University of California, Irvine and recipient of the prestigious NSF CAREER award (2012). Research focuses on partial differential equations.
AMC Program Coordinator: Dr. Hongwei Gao
Dr. Gao graduated from Zhejiang University, received his Ph.D degree from UC Irvine. He has been an Assistant Adjunct Professor in the department of mathematics at UCLA.
Math Instructor: Zhen Tian
Ms. Zhen Tian graduated from Shang Hai Fu Dan University, earned her Master of Science degree in Computer Science from State University of New York. She is a former teaching staff at State University of New York, and researcher at UC Irvine. As an enthusiastic teacher, Ms. Tian has over five years experience teaching math in different levels.
Math Instructor: Dr. Ben Yang
Dr. Yang graduated from Peking University, received his Ph.D degree from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He won a gold medal in 2007 Russian Math Olympiad. Dr. Yang is also a gold medalist in the 2007 International Math Olympiad (IMO).
Literacy Program Coordinator: Dr. Myriam Le Van
Dr. Myriam Le Van obtained the title of “Professeur Agrégé” through the most competitive and prestigious examination for civil service in the French education system. She also earned two masters’ degrees in English and History, both summa cum laude, from the University of Nancy and the University of Strasbourg, France. She completed the first years of doctoral studies in American Literature and Cultures at the research University of Montpellier, France. For three decades, she has been teaching English Literacy, Creative Writing, Essay Writing, History, Latin, French, SAT/ACT prep, and AP prep (English/French/History) to students in America as well as France, Germany, and China; many of them have scored in the highest percentiles. In 2019, the American Association of Teachers of French recognized Dr. Le Van for her excellence in teaching. Dr. Le Van homeschooled her three children all the way to college: they were accepted respectively at the age of 15, 16 and 17 to Princeton University and Columbia University. Her two daughters graduated from Princeton University and her son from Columbia University.
Literature Instructor: Dr. Eric Le Van
Dr. Eric Le Van earned his Doctoral Degree in Music History (Summa Cum Laude) from La Sorbonne University in Paris, France as well as Master’s Degrees from the University of Strasbourg, France and the Conservatory of Music in Hannover, Germany, as well as the Musik-Akademie of Basel, Switzerland. He also received a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Southern California. A Fulbright scholar and a Haven Foundation grantee, he studied literature at the University of Cambridge, England, and published writings on the intersection of music and literature with Music & Arts, Gallo, Tutor, and the Joachim Raff Society. He leads literature classes for advanced readers focusing on works by great 19th-20th English, American, German and Russian writers.
Click on the photo to visit
Solène Le Van’s website
Literature Instructor: Solène Le Van
Solène Le Van is a graduate of Princeton University, where she studied French and Italian Literature and Culture and received the “highest commendation” for research on aesthetics, poetry, and music history. An Associate Instructor at Indiana University, she served as an Associate Editor of Classical Music for Picture This Post, a cultural magazine, and held an editorial position for Kunstkammer, a journal of art criticism. A recipient of Highest Honors with Distinction from the Royal College of Music in London, she studied voice and violin as well as criticism with Ivan Hewett, head critic of the Daily Telegraph. A recipient of the Cultural Service Award from the French Embassy in New York for her contributions to French culture as a writer and performer, she has been invited to lecture on literature, music, and the fine arts at Princeton, Stanford, UPenn, the New National Theater in Tokyo, and the SAE Creative Media Institute in Paris. As a high school and middle school writing counselor, she has helped students gain admittance to Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, the University of Pennsylvania, Princeton, Carnegie Mellon, Berkeley, USC, the Davidson Academy, Groton, Exeter, Choate, and the Stanford Gifted Program.