Rachel Nguyen, a Chicago Scholar and senior at Walter Payton College Prep, has been interviewed by both and about her family鈥檚 story and her involvement in 海角乱伦社区. Rachel shared the following speech at our 25th Anniversary Celebration in October 2021.
When I think about the power of education, I think about family dinners. I鈥檝e lived in Edgewater for my entire life with my parents, my grandparents, and my two younger sisters. Food has always been a prominent part of my culture and my roots. However, we鈥檝e never really had the chance to enjoy the food together. We鈥檝e never had sit-down dinners.
My parents came to the United States in 1975 as refugees from Vietnam, and they have worked extremely hard all of my life to make sure our family has everything we need. My mother is a nail technician, and she works from nine in the morning to eight at night, almost 12 hour shifts. My father owned a restaurant called Simply It, located in Lincoln Park, for 14 years, and the demanding hours have resulted in many nights sleeping in the dining room chairs instead of his own bed. My parents have always left really early in the morning and come home late, and so I鈥檝e been like a third parent to my younger sisters who are 11 and 5 years old.
Growing up, I always had meals by myself. But when I went to my friends鈥� houses for dinner, their parents worked 9-to-5鈥檚, so it was easy to come together at the dinner table and share a nice meal. I鈥檝e always dreamt of those sit-down dinners for my family in the future. And I know that education鈥攁 college degree and a well-paying job鈥攊s the way to get there.
When I started high school at Walter Payton College Prep, the idea of college was immediately thrown around. It was a bit of a culture shock鈥攈earing names like Harvard, Columbia, Yale, and Stanford were foreign to me. At that age, I was like 鈥淚鈥檓 going to Truman for sure鈥� because the City Colleges of Chicago were the only colleges I knew about. Other schools felt unrealistic for someone like me, a first-generation college student.
But I continued to work hard in school, to be there for my sisters, and my family. And I鈥檓 proud to stand before you tonight, and tell you that I just completed seven college admission interviews at Onsite earlier today. I interviewed at Pitzer College, Northeastern University, and Middlebury College, just to name a few. This was an extremely valuable opportunity, as I had the chance to speak to my regional admissions officers and provide a story beyond the numbers on my application, to provide a face to the essays that they would be reading. I am happy to announce that at Onsite, I was granted my very first acceptance to DePaul University, located in the heart of Chicago.
See Rachel on CBS Chicago
And even though I鈥檓 done with Onsite, I鈥檓 not done applying to colleges. For instance, I鈥檓 still going to apply to Barnard College, Pomona College, and Yale in the weeks ahead, and that鈥檚 because 海角乱伦社区 has pushed me to reach higher than I would have on my own. I鈥檝e had such a strong support system throughout this process from 海角乱伦社区. My college counselor broadened my horizons. I鈥檝e been accepted into fly-in programs, and recently, I鈥檝e had the chance to fly-out and visit the University of Richmond鈥攁ll expenses paid. I鈥檓 fortunate enough to have Mentors that are 海角乱伦社区 alumni to guide me through my postsecondary journey. Not only have they recently been through the college application process themselves, but they’ve shown me how they are using their college education in their careers.
In college, I鈥檝e been thinking about majoring in public health. I want to implement policies that would alleviate the barriers in healthcare for people of color and people with a lower-income status. I鈥檝e seen members of my family impacted from gestational diabetes and severe arthritis, and expensive medications鈥攍ike Insulin鈥攈ave put a dent in our wallet. Even when my parents have experienced these physical difficulties, they’re still working as hard as ever. I want to make access to healthcare easier, not just for my family, but for all families going through this.
When I think about my hopes and dreams for the future, I think about getting my family out of a low-income bracket and into generational wealth. I think about helping my sisters with their college applications in the ways 海角乱伦社区 has helped me. And I think about taking my family out of the country on vacation. One of my goals is to take my parents back to Vietnam for the first time since they fled.
Now, all of this feels more attainable than ever before. My hope is that in the future, these things become more attainable for more and more students in Chicago. More sit-down dinners. More time with family. More access to education and healthcare. That鈥檚 the future we can build together.
