My mother constantly reminded about how education in Vietnam was not free during her time and how she commuted two hours by foot everyday to attend class – from outside its windows. Raised by my immigrant family from Vietnam and inspired by my mother’s story, I decided that I want to work as an educator with people living in poverty, who may lack resources those with money have. As a first generation college student from the disenfranchised but culturally rich Bronx, I had the privilege of growing in a multicultural society where skin color and mother languages are not communication barricades, but hues and shades that form our identity. Through working in Vietnam and Asia, I want to bring the diversity that the Bronx gave me to Japan, a country with a strong desire for international exchange, but lack of resources to do so.

Having matriculated at Vassar College, located in Poughkeepsie just two hours north of the Bronx, I noticed how the town’s large immigrant population quite paralleled my own neighborhood. I continued to support what I believe in and decided to work for Urban Education Initiative, a group of Vassar programs that allowed me to actively help Poughkeepsie public schools. Through VAST, I created and managed the Yu-Gi-Oh Circle at Poughkeepsie Middle School, incorporating the trading card game as an afterschool activity for young gamers interested. I was also able to teach critical thinking through the mechanics of Yu-Gi-Oh, in addition to the importance of sportsmanship and fair play. Through VELLOP (Vassar English Language Learners Outreach Program), I worked as an assistant language teacher in classrooms with a high number of students learning English as a second language, focusing in freshman math classes. By using my own experience from bilingual community, I simplified complex problems into a tangible form, helping students solve problems through a logical approach.

My goal to become a better educator was cultivated even further through study abroad at Waseda University. Focusing on Japanese and English Phonetics and Phonology, I learned how to teach these languages to learners as a second language. Having taken many courses taught in Japanese, I encountered challenges international students feel when they study in the United States in a language besides their own. During my cultural practicum, I worked at Magokoro Net, a volunteer group located in Iwate whose mission is to reconstruct lives affected by the East Japan Earthquake. I worked in the heavily affected Rikuzen Takada, removing hardened debris that clogged up the town waterways; I also interacted with many survivors through chakai and matsuri, and though these conversations were in Japanese, my role as an international student allowed both sides to grow – conversations that working in education in Vietnam and Japan will allow me to continue engaging in.

During August, I organized and managed a camp with a fellow volunteer in Kita Senri called “Suimu Camp,” whose purpose was to give people from Fukishima psychologically affected by the disaster a chance to enjoy camping. As the only non-Japanese person, I was a window to the United States, a chance that they did not expect when they signed up for the camp. Through Magokoro Net and Suimu Camp, I showed many Japanese people that there are many people overseas with commitment to learning Japanese and its culture, while being able to show my own roots – that gaikoku is not scary at all. It is through working overseas in Vietnam and Japan that I will be able to continue working for an organization where my role as a foreigner is a cultural resource.

Following my passion to work in classrooms with students from multiethnic backgrounds, I will gain heavily through working in a foreign environment,, where adaptation to a multilingual environment is necessary. Having already started teaching at Vassar, I would like to someday attain special education certification at the graduate level, focusing on children with difficulties in language and reading development. It is through working overseas that I will reinforce the skills needed to value difference in others, using my language and culture abilities acquired through study abroad to continue contributing to Vietnam and Japan – countries that I continue to love so dearly.

Here is my website, the Shadow Nebula.