LITTLE ROCK AIR FORCE BASE, Ark. -- When Staff Sgt. Tingting Han restarted her entire life as an adult, she searched desperately for inclusion and acceptance, but conquering challenging circumstances has been a common theme on her journey to find belonging.
That journey has taken her on a path she could have never imagined. Now, Han, a contracting specialist with the 19th Contracting Squadron, is going to be an Air Force Officer. She was selected for Officer Training School (OTS), July 22, 2024, at Little Rock Air Force Base.
Han was 29 when she immigrated to the United States from China in 2016. The culture shock was not the only obstacle she had to overcome—although she had spent three years learning it in China, English was her second language.
“People were really nice, but you know, deep, deep down it feels like I was just a foreigner, [an] outsider,” Han said. “I didn’t feel like this was my home.”
Soon, Han would consider joining the Air Force not only to find a community, but to be a part of something bigger than herself.
"If it's not now, it's never,” Han said. “If I didn't go, would I regret the decision, would I wonder how great my life would be if I actually joined?”
So, Han took the leap. Although determined, she was not a citizen yet, so the process was not simple.
"It took me almost two years from when I took the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery to the day I shipped out,” Han said. “There were many moments of uncertainty and doubt; I started to believe that maybe this would never happen for me, maybe this was all just a dream.”
Despite doubts about her age or ability to communicate effectively, Han found herself thriving through hard work and determination in her new home.
“[The] Air Force has opened [its] arms for me to provide all the opportunities that I have never imagined for me to learn to grow in this whole new Air Force career in general,” Han said. “I want to see how far I can go.”
After completing basic training, Han was stationed at Little Rock AFB as a contracting specialist with the 19th CONS. As a junior enlisted Airman, she demonstrated strong work ethic and stayed prepared for what could come next.
“Every year, every other year, my goal will change to ‘what’s the next step?’” Han said.
Han had considered OTS as that possible next step in her Air Force career, but she knew selection is highly competitive. The application process is extensive and can be daunting, requiring candidates to demonstrate exceptional qualifications, leadership potential, and a strong commitment to serving in the U.S. Air Force.
“The process itself is really stressful and exhausting,” Han said. “A lot of people have tried three times, four times, five times, just to get in.”
Despite know this, Han put in her package, and that process came to fruition on July 22 when she was called to a mandatory meeting in the conference room with her entire office. She said she didn’t think anything of it until her commander called her to the front of the room and told her she had been selected to OTS.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Han said. “It was really surreal because, yes, I put a lot of effort into the package, I had a really high hope to get it, but it’s my first time applying, so I was prepared to be rejected. I just got lucky.”
Arthur Brown, 19th CONS deputy commander and director of business operations, disagrees.
“She’s been an exceptional contracting specialist,” Brown said. “She also has a real good heart for people and the mission, from her involvement in the booster club, to organizing events to bring Airmen together.”
Han already has plans for her new life as an officer.
“I want to give back what I have been given,” Han said. “Especially my background—I’m not just an immigrant, I’m Chinese—and I have received nothing but great things from my leadership and my peers.”
Her achievement is more than just a career milestone but is also personal validation. When she started her new life in the U.S., she often felt defined by her background as an immigrant. Over the last four and a half years serving in the Air Force, that has changed drastically.
“There were many days I felt like I was just a foreigner,” Han said. “The U.S. is not just a foreign country to me now, it’s my home, I belong here.”
Han credits the Air Force and the people that have supported her along the way with fostering that sense of belonging.
“The Air Force has helped me to see my potential, to help me grow the way that I have never imagined that I would grow,” Han said. “Who knew one day I would be standing here to be selected to be [an] officer.”
Now, she is no longer just Tingting Han, a woman searching for belonging and purpose in a new country. Soon, she won’t be Staff Sgt. Han either. She has grown and flourished in the place she now claims as home and has her drive purposeful pursuance of belonging to thank for it.
“I believe in your hard work,” Han said. “I believe that if you work hard, put all the effort, and really go for it—I believe the Air Force has spots for everybody.”
At the conclusion of our interview, she had only one thing she wanted to say.
“My name is Tingting Han. I’m an Airman of the United States Air Force.”