Chan was born in Braintree, Massachusetts,[4] and grew up in Quincy, Massachusetts. Her parents were Sino-Vietnamese refugees who fled Vietnam in boats.[5][6] Chan grew up speaking Cantonese and interpreted for her grandparents who raised her and her two younger sisters, Michelle and Elaine, while her parents worked.[7][8] Chan's father owned a restaurant in Massachusetts, which he later sold to run a wholesale fish company in 2006. Chan graduated valedictorian of her class from Quincy High School,[7] where she was involved with the FIRST Robotics Competition team #69 HYPER[9][10] and where she was the captain of the tennis team.[10] Her classmates voted her "Class Genius."[8]
Although her parents were supportive of college education, they were unfamiliar with the process, including the SAT exam.[8] Chan is the first college graduate in her family and has said that "education is an incredibly personal issue" for her, noting that "[i]f you're the first generation to go to college...sometimes you don't realize your potential until others point it out."[7][11] She credits her public school teachers with recognizing hers and for "getting me excited about learning."[11] Chan received a full scholarship to attend Harvard University.[12] Feeling out of place at the school, Chan planned to transfer to another institution; however, her involvement with the Franklin Afterschool Enrichment program, specifically an encounter with a young girl who had broken teeth, inspired Chan to stay and to become a pediatrician.[13][12] Chan once reflected: “I was devastated. I thought, ‘What happened? What did I do wrong? I thought at the time, ‘I am not enough yet. … I need more skills. I need more power to be able to solve this.’ And so, when you’re 20 years old and a type-A Harvard student, the answer is medical school.”[12]
Chan first met Mark Zuckerberg, future Facebook co-founder and CEO, at a fraternity party during her freshman year at Harvard University in 2003.[17] The pair married on May 19, 2012, the day following Facebook's IPO.[7] They have three daughters: Maxima[A][18] (born December 2015),[19][20][21] August (born August 2017),[22] and Aurelia (born March 2023).[23] According to a Facebook post by Zuckerberg, Chan is a Buddhist.[24]
In 2024, a 7-foot-tall (2.1 m) green and silver statue of Chan commissioned by her husband Mark Zuckerberg was unveiled on Zuckerberg's Instagram account. The statue attracted considerable media attention and a debate as to whether it was a strange gesture.[25]
On December 1, 2015, Chan and Zuckerberg posted an open Facebook letter to their newborn daughter. They pledged to transfer 99 percent of their Facebook shares, then valued at $45 billion, to the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, which is their new limited liability company that focuses on health and education.[6][26]
Chan handles the day-to-day operations at the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative.[27] Her charitable goals focus on education, healthcare, and science, which are closely tied to her personal background.[7] She is considered to have had a strong influence on the philanthropy of her husband.[6] She was one of six nominated for the San Francisco Chronicle's third annual Visionary of the Year award in March 2017. The award honors leaders who strive to make the world a better place and also drive change by employing new, innovative business practices.[31]
^Kell, John (February 8, 2016). "Mark Zuckerberg Reveals Daughter's Chinese Name". Fortune. Archived from the original on March 6, 2021. Retrieved February 29, 2016. In a pretty adorable video shared by the tech executive over the weekend, Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan said their daughter Max's Chinese name is Chen Mingyu.
.jpg)
