Meet Vi Nguyen

Whitworth Cadre Three
'09 Graduate (B.A. Economics)
Lincoln High School '05

Coming from down under

When Vi Nguyen was twelve years old she had the choice of staying in Australia with her uncle or moving to the United States with her mom and new stepfather. Vi chose to move to the U.S., "for a better education," she says. Like any child, Vi desired to be with her mother, but also like any kid in Australia, she wanted to go to one of the big schools she had heard about on TV. "I wanted to go to some Ivy League college," she remembers.

Your typical overachiever

At Lincoln High School in Tacoma, Vi began preparing herself for Ivy League entry. She joined virtually every student club and held officer positions in each, she participated in student government and took all honor classes. "I was your typical overachiever," she says. In her junior year she surfed college preparation websites like the Princeton Review. "I did all of that stuff...not necessarily because I was interested in it, but to go to college," she says. Vi, as a high school student was clearly self-motivated and college bound, but like most high schoolers, her identity and purpose were still unclear. "I wasn't that confident in myself. I wasn't as aware of who I am as I am now," she reflects.

A first glimpse

One place Vi had begun finding her purpose was in her community. "I saw a lot of the negative side," she says remembering the Salishan public housing neighborhood, where several of her friends lived and many unpleasant memories are rooted, including the death of a friend's brother who was shot near the area. Unsettled by such events and constant dysfunction, she joined the student advisory panel for Safe Streets. As a part of this program, Vi was able to see community leaders working with students and a first glimpse at some semblance of her having a voice in her community "...but I didn't see the full picture yet," she says.

Bridging gaps

At Whitworth, Vi's purpose has become just a little more clear. Vi has found her unique background and passions to be instrumental in bridging gaps through relationships. "A lot of people just haven't been friends with a person like me," she says. Vi has also served to bridge gaps through her job as a Diversity Events Coordinator, where she has been able to share the Whitworth campus with prospective students through her unique lens. Also, Vi has served as an officer in the Hawaiian Club, a member of the Black Student Union Activism Committee and as leader in student government.

Keeping her options open

As an Arts Administration major, Vi has set her career goals broadly. Since being exposed to the non-profit world through an internship at the Northwest Leadership Foundation, Vi is considering working for a community organization, with special interests in those emphasizing the foreign relations, urban development, or the arts. "I want to help bridge the gaps that cause so much miscommunication and heartbreak in the world," she says. As she returns to her city, Vi now sees herself as a resource. Her view of the city has also changed. "I see [the city] in a more positive light," she says.

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