Chang was born at Sinai-Grace Hospital in Detroit. She was raised with her older sister, Josephina, in Canton, Michigan and is the daughter of parents who emigrated from Taiwan to pursue work in the auto industry. Chang and her husband, Sean Gray, live in Detroit with their young daughters.
Education
In 2005, Chang graduated from the University of Michigan with a bachelor’s in psychology and a minor in Asian/Pacific Islander American Studies. In May 2014, she received a master’s in public policy and a master’s in social work at the University of Michigan. While at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan, Chang was a David Bohnett Leadership Fellow, interning at the Detroit mayor's office, as a paid intern via the David Bohnett Foundation.
Community activism
Before her election, Chang worked for about a decade as a community organizer in Detroit. During that time, she worked for NextGen Climate Michigan as the state director, Center for Progressive Leadership in Michigan as the alumni engagement and evaluation coordinator, the James and Grace Lee Boggs School as the community engagement coordinator, the Campaign for Justice as deputy director, Michigan United as an organizer, and as an assistant to Grace Lee Boggs. She is also a co-founder and past president of Asian and Pacific Islander American Vote-Michigan and previously a mentor with the Detroit Asian Youth Project.
Elected office
Chang became the State Representative for Michigan's House District 6 in January 2015. In her first term, she served on the Committees on Criminal Justice, Education, and Judiciary. In her second term, she serves on the Committees on Education Reform, Law and Justice, and Natural Resources. Much of her legislative work is focused on air quality, affordable and safe drinking water, education and criminal justice reforms. She is the chair of the Progressive Women's Caucus, a founding member of the Asian Pacific American Legislative Caucus, and a member of the Detroit Caucus, Michigan Democratic Latino Legislative Caucus and Michigan Legislative Black Caucus. She also serves on the federal Environmental Protection Agency's Local Government Advisory Committee, which provides advice and recommendations to the EPA administrator to help develop strong partnerships with local governments to deliver environmental services and programs. Chang also focuses much of her work with residents in the district at the Mary Turner Center for Advocacy, the District 6 Neighborhood Service Center, ranging from saving homes from tax foreclosure to hosting a community baby shower for low-income pregnant women. The District 6 Neighborhood Service Center is shared with Detroit City Councilmember Raquel Castaneda-Lopez. In 2016 she launched the Girls Making Change fellowship, a leadership program for high school girls of color in District 6. Chang faced Bettie Cook Scott in a Democratic Party primary for Michigan Senate District 1 on August 7, 2018, winning 49% to Cook Scott's 11%. During the election, Cook Scott made racially charged comments about Chang, referring to her as "ching-chang" and "the ching-chong", but later issued an apology through a representative.
