Shamira E. Abdulla has
worked with the issue of oppression and violence against women for the past 7
years in various capacities. She is currently the Community Outreach Director of
Asian/Pacific Islander Domestic Violence Resource Project (A/PI DVRP), in
Washington, DC, where she educates the community about domestic violence and
issues relevant to A/PI women and A/PI communities; refers abused A/PI women to
appropriate social, legal and health services; provides limited peer counseling
and victim advocacy to battered clients; provides assistance in obtaining
translation and interpretation for battered clients and/or local service
providers. In 1999, she earned her Master's degree in International Development
from American University and focused on Gender Issues and South Asia. Shamira
received her Bachelor's degree in 1996 from West Virginia University in Biology,
with a concentration in International Studies. Top
Meighan Belsley, M.S. was
born in Washington, D.C. in 1971. She spent her early childhood in Dallas,
Texas. In 1978, Meighan returned to the Washington, D.C. area and has lived here
since.
Meighan graduated from Virginia Tech in 1993, and received her Masters of
Science Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) from the Northern Virginia
Center campus of Virginia Tech in 2001. During the MFT program, she conducted
500 hours of family, couples, and individual therapy. For her clinical project,
she developed and presented a community model for the prevention of school
violence.
As an undergraduate student, Meighan volunteered as a Peer Educator speaking to
student groups on a weekly basis about the protection against the transmission
of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. She was hired as a Peer
Educator in her senior year to create and perform in a video-taped series to
educate university students about HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases, and
alcohol abuse. Additionally, Meighan served as Deputy Senator for Virginia Tech
Student Government, and assisted in establishing a Women’s Center for the
University. For her continued service at Virginia Tech, Meighan was selected to
the Omicron Delta Kappa Honor Society and Who’s Who Among American College and
University Women.
Since 1994, Meighan has volunteered her time and energies with various
self-awareness workshops. She has produced, coached, and facilitated individuals
and groups to increase their own consciousness. Meighan currently facilitates
Voice Dialogue, a gentle and effective tool that assists individuals to
explore different aspects of themselves, and how to manage their personal and
professional relationships.
Presently Meighan is a special assistant to the Executive Director of the
National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors (NASMHPD), which
represents the collective interests of State Mental Health Agencies in the 50
states, 4 territories, and the District of Columbia. NASMHPD establishes key
state and federal partnerships to address issues related to public mental
health.
Meighan enjoys playing the piano, songwriting, painting, and dancing. She
believes that in order to improve the human condition, one must look inward and
start with oneself. Top
Larry Berman is Director
of the University of California Washington Center and Professor of Political
Science at the University of California, Davis.
Berman is the author or co-author of ten books and numerous articles. His
research and publications have focused on the presidency, foreign policy and
Vietnam. The most recent book, No Peace, No Honor has been featured on
C-Span’s Book TV, the History Channel’s Secrets of War, reviewed prominently in
the New York Times, Washington Post, Boston Globe,
Sacramento Bee, and Washington Times. In July 2002 No Peace, No
Honor: Nixon, Kissinger and Betrayal in Vietnam was published in paperback
by Simon & Schuster. The Vietnamese language edition, Khong Hoa Binh, Chang
Danh Du: Nixon, Kissinger, Va Su Phan Boi O Viet Nam, was recently published
by Viet Tide of Westminster, California.
Berman has been awarded fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the American
Council of Learned Societies, the National Science Foundation, and several
research grants from presidential libraries. He has been a Fellow at the Woodrow
Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C. and a scholar in
residence at the Rockefeller Foundation’s Center in Bellagio, Italy. He has
appeared on a number of broadcasts, including Bill Moyers PBS series, “The
Public Mind” and David McCullough’s American Experience series, “Vietnam: A
Television History.”
Berman received the 1996 Outstanding Mentor of Women in Political Science Award
from the Women's Caucus for Political Science. He received the 1994 Bernath
Lecture Prize, given annually by the Society for Historians of American Foreign
Relations to a scholar whose work has most contributed to our understanding of
foreign relations.
His class on the American presidency is cited in Lisa Birnbach’s New and
Improved College Guide as one of the most recommended classes for
undergraduates at UC Davis. He has lectured in Australia, China, Germany,
Israel, France, The Netherlands and Vietnam on American politics, foreign policy
and Vietnam. Top
Jean Bruggeman graduated from the Georgetown
University Law Center in 2000. She was a Student Attorney in Georgetown’s
Domestic Violence Clinic and represented women in obtaining Civil Protection
Orders and Child Custody and Support Orders in DC Superior Court. She was
awarded a Women’s Law and Public Policy Fellowship to serve as the VAWA Attorney
at Ayuda in Washington DC, representing immigrant women in obtaining legal
immigration status, and providing training and technical assistance to service
providers nationally.
Jean now serves as the Legal Services
Coordinator for Boat People SOS. She currently oversees two programs, focusing
on domestic violence and trafficking in persons. The domestic violence program
was formed in 1999 to conduct outreach and education within the Vietnamese
communities in Northern Virginia. The program has now expanded to provide direct
legal and social services, as well as outreach and education in DC, MD, and VA.
The trafficking program was formed in 2000 to assist the 250 victims of
trafficking (mostly Vietnamese women) enslaved in a sweatshop on the island of
American Samoa and is expanding to provide on-going services to these victims
now that they are resettling in the US. A new program is also being developed,
in partnership with Ayuda, to provide comprehensive services to trafficking
victims in the DC area. Top
Kim-Thu Bui lives near her
family in Atlanta, Georgia. She is passionate about her work with the Center for
the Visually Impaired and Hands On Atlanta Community Outreach committee. An
active member of the Asian American Journalists Association-Atlanta Chapter, she
has held every position from Secretary to President and recently completed the
AAJA Executive Leadership program in New York.
Kim-Thu is currently a Senior Producer for CNN Special Projects where she
supervises the unit and develops, writes, and produces packages for CNN
networks. Prior to joining CNN in 1995, Kim-Thu was a writer for the Marietta
Daily Journal. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Communications from
Kennesaw State University. Kim-Thu's interests include being a "student of
life," practicing yoga, salsa dancing and reading. She was born in Manchester,
Connecticut and grew up in the San Francisco Bay area. Top
Named as one of Newsweek's
"2001 Women of the New Century," Christine Chen currently serves as the
Executive Director for the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA), a national
Asian Pacific American civil rights organization based in Washington, D.C.
representing over 80 chapters and affiliates. She coordinates programs and
monitors issues pertaining to the Asian Pacific American community, such as hate
crimes, racial profiling, election reform, immigration reform, and affirmative
action. Ms. Chen currently sits on the executive board for the Leadership
Conference on Civil Rights, National Council of Asian Pacific Americans and for
YouthVote, and the advisory boards for the Midwest Asian American Students Union
(MAASU), and the East Coast Asian American Students Union (ECASU).
Previously, she served as Director of Programs for OCA for six years. She
coordinated the first national Asian Pacific American voter registration and
education campaign in 1996 and then served as the National Director for the
APIAVote 2000 campaign. The campaign initially registered over 75,000 new voters
in 1996 and translated and created voter registration posters in Chinese, Korean
and Vietnamese. Ms. Chen also developed a leadership training program, "APIAU:
Leadership 101", which trains over 600 Asian Pacific American college students
every year. Top
Dr. Chu is the President
of Vietcare. Vietcare was started in 1998 by a small group of Vietnamese
Americans who were former refugees. When they were in the refugee camps,
each one of them made individual promises to return and provide the same
assistance that they had received as refugees. Vietcare began its mission
at the last "home" for Vietnamese refugees (the Vietvillage in the Philippines)
by taking care of the remaining Vietnamese and proceeded to aid the Filipinos
who lived in the surrounding communities. Vietcare aims to help other Vietnamese
to learn how to form other volunteer groups so that they too, as Vietnamese
refugees, can give back, contribute and continue the spirits that got them to
where they presently find themselves.
In 2003, Dr. Chu was
nominated and accepted into the American College of Dentists. His induction will
be in October 2003. The fellowship in the American College of Dentist is
given to those who provide leadership in the field of dentistry and demonstrate
commitment to community services. Additionally, he received a
Gubernatorial Citation from Governor Parrish Glenndening of Maryland.
EDUCATION
Certificate of Prosthodontics: Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, University
of Maryland, 1990.
Doctor of Dental Surgery: Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, University of
Maryland, 1988.
Bachelor of Arts: University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1984. Top
Officer Dang immigrated to
the United States with his family in the winter of 1980 when he was 4 years old.
Sponsored by a church group in Minnesota, Officer Dang grew up in the inner city
of Minneapolis. Following in the footsteps of both his parents who were
former police officers in Saigon, Vietnam, Officer Dang knew at a young age he
too wanted to be a police officer and serve the community.
Officer Dang attended the University of Louisiana at Lafayette where he earned a
Bachelor of Science degree. While in school, he worked as a reserve police
officer for 3½ years and another 1½ years full-time before graduating in
2000. Officer Dang became the head reserve officer of his department and
supervised 35 reserve police officers. During this period, Officer Dang
also served as a Vietnamese interpreter for the regional police departments,
court systems, and hospitals. Officer Dang also served as vice-president
of the University's Vietnamese Association.
In April of 2002, Officer Dang was appointed as a member of the United States
Capitol Police. After completing 2 months of basic training in Glynco,
Georgia and an additional 3 months of job related training at Cheltonham,
Maryland, Officer Dang graduated in the top of his class. Officer Dang is
now assigned to the Capitol Division working uder the House Chamber Section.
His responsibilities are the protection of Congress, the protection of life and
property, preservation of peace, the prevention of crime, and the arrest of
violators of the law.
Officer Dang now resides in Northern Virginia. Top
Prior to his election to Congress, Tom was
the chief elected official in Fairfax County, the eleventh most populous
municipality with the second largest county budget in the United States. In
1993, during Tom’s tenure as Chairman of the Board of Supervisors, Fairfax
County was recognized as the nation’s best financially-managed county.
Formerly the Vice President and General
Counsel of PRC, Inc., a high technology and professional services firm
headquartered in McLean, Virginia, Tom moved to the position of Corporate
Counsel upon his election as Chairman of the Fairfax County Board of
Supervisors. Before his election to that post, Tom served for 12 years as Mason
District’s representative to the Board. Tom is also a charter member and past
president of the Bailey’s Crossroads Rotary Club, and he has served on numerous
charity boards.
Tom was born in Minot, North Dakota on
January 5, 1949, and moved with his family to Fairfax County at an early age. He
graduated as president of his class from the United States Capitol Page School
following four years as a U.S. Senate Page. He went on to Amherst College,
graduating with honors in Political Science, and subsequently earned his law
degree from the University of Virginia. Tom also attended Officer Candidate
School, served on active duty in the U.S. Army, and spent eight years with the
Virginia National Guard and the U.S. Army Reserve.
A lifelong Republican, Tom was married in
1973 to the former Peggy Rantz. Peggy, a graduate of Fairfax County’s J.E.B.
Stuart High School and the University of Virginia Medical School, is a
gynecologist in Fairfax. The couple has three children: Carlton, Pamela and
Shelley.
Tom’s Legislative Accomplishments:
Tom’s list of legislative accomplishments
began almost as soon as he took office, when he was given control of the
Government Reform Committee’s Subcommittee on the District of Columbia. During
his first year in Congress, Tom authored and co-sponsored several important
bills that were enacted into law, including the D.C. Financial Control Board
Act; the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995; the Federal Acquisition Reform
Act; and the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Tom quickly earned a
reputation among his constituents, colleagues and the media as a strong advocate
of federal employees and contractors, and as an expert in federal procurement
policy.
Tom also serves as one of four co-chairs of
the Information Technology Working Group, a group he founded to promote a better
understanding of issues important to the computer and technology industries. In
May 1999 he sponsored the Y2K Act, legislation which ensured that businesses
spent their money on Y2K compliance rather than saving it for costly lawsuits
that might have otherwise arisen. Tom was the recipient of the Electronic
Industry Alliance’s 1999 Congressional Technology Policy Award and was inducted
into the American Electronics Association’s High Tech Hall of Fame in Spring
2000.
Tom has been a leader in reforming Congress’
lobbying and gift rules and was recognized as a "True Blue Reformer" by the
advocacy group "Public Citizen" for his consistently strong support of political
and ethics reforms. Tom has earned a "Deficit Hawk" Award and the highest score
in Virginia from the Concord Coalition, a bipartisan citizen’s council dedicated
to deficit reduction.
In September 1997, National Republican
Congressional Committee Chairman John Linder named Tom to be his chief
recruiter. When the rules were changed in 1998, making the NRCC chairmanship an
elected rather than appointed post, Tom won the chairmanship by a convincing
margin. After defying the pundits by maintaining the GOP’s majority in the House
in November 2000, Tom was easily re-elected to again lead the NRCC through 2002.
Tom stepped down as chair of the D.C.
subcommittee at the end of 2000 after a string of legislative wins. Tom backed
1997 legislation granting control of nine city agencies to the Control Board,
and in the process secured the closing of Lorton Prison by the end of 2001. In
February 1999, Tom sponsored a bill restoring full management powers to the
District government; that bill became the first legislation signed into law that
year. Perhaps his biggest accomplishment as committee chair came with passage of
the D.C. College Access Act, which, for the first time ever, will allow high
school graduates in the District to attend public colleges in Maryland and
Virginia at in-state rates. In the 107th Congress, Tom will serve as vice
chairman of the D.C. subcommittee, as he continues to believe that ensuring the
strength and solvency of the Nation’s Capitol is a key to promoting the growth
of the entire region.
Tom continues to fight for those issues most
important to Northern Virginians, including securing more federal dollars for
transportation projects and seeing to it that federal education funding can be
spent as local school districts see fit. Tom was instrumental in securing the
final $900 million for a new Woodrow Wilson Bridge in 2000, which raised the
federal government’s contribution to the new span to $1.5 billion.
In January 2001, Tom was named chairman of
the newly formed Government Reform Subcommittee on Technology and Procurement
Policy. He also has reclaimed his seat on the Energy and Commerce Committee,
with a spot on the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet. Both
posts are critical to Northern Virginia’s high tech community. Top
Uyen Dinh was born in
Saigon, Vietnam and immigrated with her family to the United States on April 20,
1975. She graduated from James Madison University (JMU) in 1993, and from the
Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law in 1996. Uyen is a
member of the Virginia State Bar.
At JMU, Uyen was a
founding sister of the Theta Iota Chapter of Alpha Phi International Fraternity.
In addition, she served as the Public Affairs Officer for the Asian American
Association, and the program director for the Asian-American Student Conference
in 1993. At the Columbus School of Law, Uyen served as the External Affairs
Officer for the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association (APALSA). She
also participated in Moot Court and served as Moot Court Judge from 1993-1996.
Uyen is the founder and
Director of Empress Productions, a Vietnamese performing arts organization in
the Washington, DC area. Empress Productions comprises of young volunteers who
perform traditional Vietnamese cultural dances and play traditional instruments.
Empress Productions also produce Vietnamese cultural and fashion shows complete
with historical narration and authentic costumes. Since 1993, Empress
Productions performs annually at the National Independence Day Parade, the
Fairfax Fair, Vietnamese American Youth Leadership Conference (VAYLC), and other
heritage and culture events in the Washington, DC Metropolitan area. Empress
Productions is proud to continue this tradition for the 10th consecutive year.
In the mid-1990’s, Uyen
served as executive producer and host of Our Generasian, a local cable talk show
focusing on Asian-American issues. The weekly show hosted local community and
business leaders, scholars, and students as guests to discuss diverse subject
matters affecting the Asian-American community. She was a member of the
Vietnamese Public Television Board of Directors from 1992-1998.
From 1997-2002, Uyen
served as Legislative Counsel for Congressman Tom Davis (R-VA), specializing in
national security and defense, international affairs, trade, labor, immigration,
civil rights, and First Amendment rights issues. From 2002-2003, she served as
Counsel for the Subcommittee on Technology and Procurement Policy of the House
Committee on Government Reform. Her portfolio focused on information technology
(IT) issues related to national security and homeland defense, first responders,
Department of Defense issues, including training, encroachment, and property
issues, and nuclear, chemical, biological, radiological (NBCR) terrorism. In
early 2003, Uyen served as Counsel on the House Committee on Government Reform
where she analyzed statues and legislation within Committee’s jurisdiction,
reviewed hearing proposals and analysis for legal issues, and requested audits
and reports from Federal agencies. In addition to her Counsel duties, Uyen also
served as a senior advisor to Rep. Davis on issues affecting the Asian-American
communities in the Washington, DC Metropolitan area.
Presently, Uyen is Counsel
for the House Armed Services Committee. Her focus is now authorization and
oversight of the Department of Defense IT programs, systems, and policies. Her
duties include drafting legislation, preparing hearings, and handling all IT
issues for the annual National Defense Authorization Act. She also advises
Chairman Jim Saxton (R-NJ) and Members of the Terrorism, Unconventional Threats,
and Capabilities Subcommittee on issues involving the Subcommittee’s
jurisdiction, House, Senate, and Committee rules, statutes, regulations, and new
legislation under consideration in the 108th Congress. Top
John Quoc Duong is the Executive Director of the White House
Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. In this capacity, he is
charged with coordinating all federal activities under Executive Order 13216*,
to increase opportunities for and improve the quality of life of over twelve
million Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs). In addition, Mr. Duong
works with the White House and the President’s Advisory Commission on AAPIs to
advise the President on the needs and concerns of this population.
Prior to joining the Bush-Cheney Administration, Mr. Duong was Vice President of
Bridgecreek Development, a real estate development company based in California.
He previously served in various capacities in California Governor Pete Wilson’s
Office of Community Relations, most recently as Deputy Director of that office.
In his appointed capacity, Mr. Duong represented the Governor in all aspects of
community affairs throughout the state and was the Governor’s spokesperson to
specialty media. He also represented the Governor in protocol matters, including
meetings with foreign diplomats, trade delegations, and working with
locally-based consulate generals’ offices. In 1999, Mr. Duong founded
Q-Strategies, a consulting firm for small businesses.
With a commitment to public service, Mr. Duong has served as a board member on
the Contra Costa College Foundation, the Contra Costa County Workforce
Development Board, the America Viet League, and the Vietnamese American Council.
He was also a member of the Commonwealth Club of California, the Richmond-San
Pablo Exchange Club, and the Vietnamese American Public Affairs Committee.
Mr. Duong came to the United States in 1982, at the age of nine, as a refugee
from Vietnam. He formerly resided in the San Francisco Bay Area and is a
graduate of the University of California, Davis.
* Formerly, Executive Order 13125, signed June 7, 1999. Top
Je Yon Jung is an active
member and former national governing board D.C. chapter representative to the
National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum ("NAPAWF"), an organization
dedicated to forging a grassroots progressive movement for social and economic
justice and the political empowerment for Asian and Pacific American women and
girls. She is the chair of NAPAWF's "Comfort Women" Campaign which seeks justice
on behalf of World War II's 200,000 women and girls who were forced into sexual
slavery.
Ms. Jung is a civil rights attorney in Washington D.C., where she has practiced
housing and public accommodations discrimination law for the last six years.
Previously, she clerked for the Honorable Linda K. Davis on the D.C. Superior
Court. She received her law degree from the Ohio State University College of Law
with honors in 1996. She received a B.A. in Philosophy of Law and Communications
from the University of Colorado-Boulder in 1992. Top
Phuong Ly got her start in
journalism as editor of her high school newspaper in North Carolina. She is a
graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, with degrees in
journalism and American history. She worked for two years at the Charlotte
Observer before joining the Washington Post in July 1999. Currently, she reports
for the paper's Maryland desk, covering criminal justice and immigration issues.
She also sits on the national board of the Asian American Journalists
Association, a 1,700-member group that works to ensure fair and accurate news
coverage of Asian Americans and increase the number of Asians in the media
business.
Top
Sherri Ly joined WTTG/FOX
5 as a reporter in September 2002. You will see her reporting on Channel 5 at
10pm weeknights. Since coming to Washington she has covered a wide range of
stories, most notably the sniper shootings in October. She is one of a number of
reporters who contributed to the station’s sniper coverage, earning Channel 5 a
National Edward R. Murrow Award for its reporting.
Prior to coming to
Washington, DC, Sherri worked as a reporter and anchor in the Los Angeles area
and San Francisco. She traveled across the state, reporting from wildfires in
the Sequoia National Forest to snowstorms in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. When
not on the road, she also spent much of her time covering political issues. Her
five part investigation into California’s mandatory drug treatment law brought
attention to substance abuse and sparked debate about the legal system. In
Orange County, CA Sherri also covered demonstrations in Little Saigon, when
thousands protested the communist Vietnam flag and a picture of Ho Chi Minh at a
video store.
Sherri’s mother is
Vietnamese. She was born in Okinawa, Japan and grew up in Florida. In her spare
time she enjoys sports, traveling and spending time with her husband and family. Top
Carlton Nguyen was born in
Saigon, Vietnam. He and his family immigrated to the U.S. in 1981. After several
moves, they settled in Memphis, Tennessee. Carlton grew up in Memphis and earned
his Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Memphis.
While in college, Carlton
interned at Merrill Lynch, NBC Bank, and The Southwestern company-selling books
door-to-door. During this period, he attended over 200 hours of motivational
seminars listening to speakers from Bob Richards to Rudy.
Carlton began his career
with the State Farm office in Nashville, Tennessee immediately after college
with the goal of becoming an agent. While in Tennessee, he volunteered with the
Junior Achievement and PERT (Partners Encouraging Reading and Tutoring). He also
served as Sergeant-At-Arms for Toastmasters International and was a member of
the Emerging Markets Council for State Farm in Tennessee and Kentucky. He is a
member of the Knights of Columbus.
In 2001, Carlton was
offered the opportunity to manage his own agency in Falls Church, Virginia. As a
business owner, he runs an insurance and financial services agency. His agency
offers auto, life, health, fire, and commercial insurance. Accomplishments with
State Farm include: Top 46 Trainee Agent in the nation, Ambassadors for Life, VA
Vice-President of Agency Club, and member of National Association of Insurance
and Financial Advisors. Carlton loves his job and enjoys meeting new clients
everyday. Top
Nguyen Manh Hung is
associate professor of Public and International Affairs, director of the
Indochina Program, and program coordinator of the Asia Pacific Studies Minor,
George Mason University. He received his License en Droit (J.D.) from the
Faculty of Law, University of Saigon (1960), and both his M.A. (1963) and Ph.D.
in International Relations from the University of Virginia (1965). Prior to
1975, Dr. Hung was professor of International Politics, National School of
Public Administration and the University of Saigon, Vietnam, and a frequent
lecturer at the National Defense College.
Outside the academia, Dr.
Hung chaired several committees to reorganize the Vietnamese civil service,
served as planning advisor to the President of the National Economic Development
Fund, then Deputy Minister of National Planning of the Republic of Vietnam. A
former Fulbright Scholar and Social Science Research Council Fellow, Dr. Hung is
the author of several books, book chapters, and articles. His major publications
include Introduction to International Relations (Saigon, 1971), Peace
and Development in South Vietnam (with Nguyen Van Hao et al, Saigon, 1973),
and The Challenge of Vietnam's Reconstruction (with A. Terry Rambo and
Neil L. Jameison, Virginia, 1991). His contributed book chapters to New
Directions in the International Relations of Southeast Asia (Singapore
University Press, 1973), Refugees in the United States (Greenwood Press,
1985), The American War in Vietnam: Lessons, Legacies, and Implications for
Future Conflict (Greenwood Press, 1987), Refugees in America in the
1990's (Greenwood Press, 1996), Southeast Asia On The Growth Path (Universiti
Pertanian Malaysia Press, 1997) and published articles in World Affairs,
Asian Survey, Pacific Affairs, Amerasia Journal, and
Journal of Asian Thought and Society. Dr. Hung is a member of the
International Studies Association and the Association for Asian Studies and has
participated in major policy working groups on Vietnam and Indochina, including
the Indochina Policy Forum of the Aspen Institute, the Indochina Study Group of
the Council on Foreign Relations, and the Southeast Asia Working Group of the
Center for Strategic and International Studies. He has served as an advisor to
the National Association for the Education and Advancement of Cambodian,
Laotian, and Vietnamese Americans (NAFEA), the
National Congress of
Vietnamese Americans (NCVA), and the Vietnamese Association for Computing,
Engineering Technology and Science (VACETS).
COURSES TAUGHT: American Foreign Policy, Introduction to International Politics,
Government and Politics of Asia
CURRENT RESEARCH: Vietnamese government and politics, U.S.-Vietnamese Relations,
U.S. foreign policy toward Asia, Transformation of Communism with special
emphasis on China and Vietnam.
Top
Ms. Kim Oanh Nguyen is an
accomplished player of Dan Tranh, a 16-string guitar or zither. Devoted to
traditional Vietnamese culture, she has combined her musical training with
artistic performances. Ms. Nguyen is a graduate of the Saigon Conservatory of
Music and Performing Arts as well as the Gia-Dinh National School of Fine Arts
in Viet Nam. She has taught traditional music and dance extensively in Viet Nam
and the United States, and in the process, trained hundreds of dancers and
musicians. Ms. Nguyen has served as artistic advisor to many well-known
Vietnamese musical and dance groups in both Viet Nam and the United States. She
is noted for her numerous demonstrations at Smithsonian folk festivals, as well
as presentations of traditional Vietnamese music at colleges and universities
across America. Ms. Nguyen serves in a leadership role to preserve the rich
cultural heritage of Viet Nam, by teaching and advising students the importance
of Vietnams’ rich and diverse repertoire of traditional music and dance. Top
Mina Nguyen
Director of Public Liaison, U.S. Department of Labor
Mina T. Nguyen was
recently named Director of Public Liaison by Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao.
Serving in the Senior Executive Service for the Bush Administration, Nguyen is
responsible for providing advice and counsel to the Secretary of Labor on the
vast array of workforce development issues and for planning and development of
long-range strategy for achieving Secretarial priorities.
Prior to being named
Director of Public Liaison, Nguyen was appointed in September of 2001 to serve
as Special Assistant to the Secretary of Labor. In this role, Nguyen worked on
the Department’s key initiative by addressing the changing needs of the 21st
Century Workforce by leading the Department’s national, state and local outreach
efforts.
Prior to her appointment,
Nguyen was a management consultant with Accenture, the world’s largest global
consulting firm, where she developed business strategies for leading companies
in the high-tech, transportation and telecommunications industries.
Nguyen has also been
recognized for her public service commitments in bridging the digital divide and
assisting in the reorganization of the Bay Area juvenile justice system. She
spent 2 years mentoring and working with incarcerated youths as a Juvenile Court
Advocate for the Alameda County Juvenile Hall.
Nguyen is a graduate of
the University of California at Berkeley, Walter A. Haas School of Business
where she received a degree in business administration. She also served in the
office of California Congressman Dana Rohrabacher as the UC Berkeley President’s
Fellow. Nguyen is a resident of Orange County, California. Top
Born in Saigon, Vietnam,
Ryan Pham and his family immigrated to the U.S. in 1981 and settled in the
Dallas, TX area. Lt. Pham has served in the military for seven years. His major
awards include the National Service Defense medal and the Air Force Achievement
medal. He received his nomination to attend the U.S. Air Force Academy in
Colorado Springs, CO from Congressman Sam Johnson and graduated in May of 2000
with a Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering.
After graduation, he
became Assistant Regional Director of Admissions for Air Force ROTC Region 4-5
at Randolph AFB in San Antonio, TX. In this assignment, he was a liaison who
cooperated and coordinated with high school counselors to educate high school
students about scholarship opportunities through the ROTC program. His efforts
helped over 100 students in the south Texas area receive four year Air Force
ROTC scholarships. These scholarships offered students the opportunity to attend
any of over 900 public and private colleges and universities across the country.
Following his assignment
in San Antonio, he started Undergraduate Pilot Training at Columbus AFB in
Columbus, MS in August of 2001. At Columbus, he was assigned to the 37th Flying
Training Squadron (FTS) and received initial training in the T-37, the Air
Force’s primary trainer. After completing T-37 training, he received specialized
training as a tanker/transport pilot in the 48th FTS flying the T-1, a military
version of the Beech 400 business jet. Upon graduation in September of 2002, he
received his Air Force “wings” and was presented the Top Gun Award for T-37
formation flying.
Lt. Pham is currently a
KC-10 pilot assigned to the 32nd Air Refueling Squadron at McGuire AFB located
in Wrightstown, NJ. The Boeing KC-10 is a variant of the commercial DC-10,
originally developed by Douglas Corporation (McDonnell Douglas). This jet is a
dual role aircraft because it has the capability to perform air refueling tanker
and/or cargo transport missions. Following the September 11th attacks, the
KC-10’s from McGuire AFB have been instrumental in the country’s national
defense against terrorism. The KC-10 has flown air refueling missions in support
of fighters patrolling the east coast and played a vital role in Operation
Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom by providing aerial refueling for
fighters, bombers, and airlifters in addition to transporting cargo to the
theater. Top
Judge Tu M. Pham was sworn
in as a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Western District of Tennessee on April 21,
2003. At age 31, Judge Pham is the youngest federal magistrate judge in the
United States. He is also the country’s first federal judge born in Vietnam.
Judge Pham graduated from
Tulane University in 1993 with a B.A. in English, and was president of the
Tulane University Vietnamese Association. He received his law degree from The
University of Illinois College of Law in 1996, graduating summa cum laude
(highest honors), and was a member of the Order of the Coif. While in law
school, Judge Pham was the Articles Editor for the law review, a writer for the
Illinois Bar Journal–Recent Decisions Section, and an Albert J. Harno Scholar.
He also served as secretary for the Asian-American Pacific-Islander Law Students
Association.
After law school, Judge
Pham was a law clerk to the Honorable William L. Garwood of the U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Judge Pham later joined the law firm of Kirkland
& Ellis in Chicago as a litigation attorney, focusing primarily on complex
litigation, antitrust and intellectual property matters.
In 1999, Judge Pham became
an Assistant U.S. Attorney, first with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the
Western District of Tennessee, and later with the Northern District of Illinois.
As a federal criminal prosecutor, Judge Pham investigated and prosecuted
numerous criminal cases on behalf of the United States, including the successful
prosecution of defendants for racketeering, bribery of public officials, tax
evasion, mail and wire fraud, money laundering, drug trafficking, and
gang-related crimes. Just prior to his appointment as a magistrate judge, Judge
Pham was assigned to the Chicago Office’s International Narcotics Unit,
prosecuting drug trafficking and money laundering by Colombian and Mexican
cartels.
Judge Pham was born on
November 17, 1971, in Di Linh, Vietnam, and immigrated with his family to the
United States in 1975. Top
EDUCATION:
Juris Doctor, Howard University School of Law, May 1997
Bachelor of Science, University of Maryland, August 1994
WORK
United States Marine Corps, 2001 - 2003
Commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant on August 2001 after graduating from Officer
Candidate School. After continuing in the Basic Officer Course 06-01, 2nd Lt.
Tran commenced Naval Justice School (NJS) for training in military and operation
international law. Upon graduating NJS, 2nd Lt. Tran was promoted to 1stLt Tran
and joined 2nd Force Service Support Group (2dFSSG). While at 2dFSSG 1st Lt.
Tran worked in the defense billet, and represented Marines and Sailors before
courts-martial, and administrative boards. In late 2002, 1st Lt. Tran was
augmented to 2d Marine Expeditionary Brigade (2dMEB), also known as Task Force
Tarawa, in the present Iraqi contingency. Top
Minh N. Vu
Counselor to the Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division,
Department of Justice
Minh N. Vu is the
Counselor to the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights,
Ralph F. Boyd, Jr. In that capacity, she advises the Assistant Attorney General
on matters pending in the Employment, Disability Rights, and Housing Sections of
the Civil Rights Division. The Division is the primary institution within the
federal government responsible for enforcing federal laws prohibiting
discrimination on the basis of race, gender, handicap, religion, and national
origin. The Division also enforces several criminal statutes outlawing violence
or threats of violence against people engaged in the exercise of their
fundamental rights.
Prior to joining the Civil
Rights Division, Ms. Vu was a litigator in a law firm where she specialized in
matters involving discrimination in employment, public accommodations, housing,
and education. Ms. Vu obtained her B.A. from Columbia College and graduated with
honors from the University of Pennsylvania Law School where she was an editor of
the Law Review. Ms. Vu is originally from Vietnam. Top
KaYing Yang, the Executive
Director of the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC), was formerly the
Executive Director of the Women’s Association of Hmong and Lao (WAHL) of St.
Paul, Minnesota, a mutual assistance association. A community activist and
advocate, Ms. Yang participates in the activities of many civil rights
organizations whose mission is to increase the visibility of Asian Pacific
American communities locally and nationally. She is a founding member of the
Minnesota and Washington, DC chapters of the National Asian Pacific American
Women's Forum (NAPAWF), the Hmong Women's Educational Association of Colorado (HWEAC),
and the Laotian American National Alliance (LANA). She currently sits on the
board of the Asian Pacific American Advisory Committee to the
Gates Millennium Scholars Program (GMSP),
National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA),
National Immigration Forum (NIF),
Refugees International (RI),
LANA, and the Charity Lobbying in the Public Sector (CLPI). In 1998, Ms. Yang
was featured by the St. Paul Pioneer Press newspaper as one of
ninety-nine people to watch in 1999. She was also named one of the 500 most
influential Asian Americans by Avenue Asia magazine in 1995. In that same
year, Ms. Yang was a leading organizer of a group of twelve Hmong women from
across the country to participate in the United Nations Fourth World Conference
on Women and the Non-Governmental Organization Forum in China. She has traveled
extensively in the United States and Southeast Asia to speak about the Hmong
American experience and diaspora, as well as to learn about the globalization of
refugees and the internally displaced people.
A frequently invited speaker and panelist at conferences, seminars and
educational symposia throughout the United States, in May of 2000 she joined
other Asian American leaders who traveled to Israel as guests of Project
Interchange, an international program sponsored by the American Jewish
Committee. She has also been quoted in local and national media, and interviews
of her life experiences appear in Warrior Lessons, by Phoebe Eng and
Women's Untold Stories, Breaking Silence, Talking Back,
Voicing Complexity, edited by Mary Romero & Abigail J. Stewart. In 2000 Ms.
Yang was the recipient of the National Hmong Women's Leadership Award given by
the Hmong Women's Action Team in recognition of her leadership to improve the
status of Hmong women and girls. Ms. Yang holds a BA in Sociology from the
University of Colorado at Boulder.
Ms. Yang and her family came to Columbus, Ohio in July of 1976, as refugees from
Laos. Her parents, brother, and sister-in-law and two nephews recently made
Minnesota their new home state. Top
