| On graduates and graduation FN ~ bg Se tae aS ae SPE x See Un PN . CARERS 3 +straight A's = top grad “My grandmother paid lots of or T. Luong Nguyen, America is still the land | money. to get me in a boat,” he said, of opportunity, and. as the but the man ‘chickened out’ when it came time to leave , fearing the patrollcollege’s only straight : A graduating ing communist soldiers would capture senior, it’s obvious he took advantage them. 3.07 of the opportunities. ~ Nguyen tried a second time to escape Nguyen, most Americans. call him with another boatman, but the engine Lew, is a refugee from Vietnam who failed while they were still in waters _ came from Saigon to Ogden in 1982, controlled by the North Vietnamese, | learned English, finished high school, earned his brown: belt in karate and and he was captured and put into prison. turned 22 years old on June 13, the “The bad part was the mosquitos. same day he graduated from Weber The first night I didn’t sleep under a State. He graduated after only three mosquito net and I got stung a lot. years with a math major and having When I did get under, the mosquitos never received less than straight A would cover the netting and sting you grades. every time you touched the net,” he ‘My sister is otoksbly the smartest said. “In the daytime, they were so full one in the family,” Nguyen said. of blood that they couldn't fly. I wrote Nguyen’s father was a major in the my name on the wall with mosquito army of South Vietnam when Saigon fell to North Vietnam, and was put in blood,” Nguyen added. His grandmother bought his way out jail for nine years by the communist army. That made it impossible for the of prison after a month. (Half of the 93 people packed in the 36 foot by 12 foot children, two sons and three room stay in that one room for a daughters, to go to school, and certain minimum of six months, he said.) that the sons would end up in the comHe was released from prison in munist army fighting in the most November, spent Christmas at home, dangerous areas. : “By 18 I would have to join the ar- and the next day made his third atmy, and if I joined. the army I would tempt to flee the country. He traveled in a 10 foot boat until get sent to Cambodia or Thailand to fight, and a lot of people. get killed out of communist controlled waters, then rendezvoused with a 33 foot boat, there,” he said. His: older brother: had already. suc- packed with others heading for refugee cessfully left the country. and im- camps in Malaysia. “There are two problems with boat migrated to Ogden where he graduated from WSC in math, and at age 17 people,” Nguyen said. “The first is that the engine might fail and you'll get - Nguyen made his first attempt to leave caught, or it will fail at sea and you'll the country. After completing an English as a second language program and _ high school at the Canyon High School, he enrolled in spring quarter at WSC. “T took math classes. | knew math in -Vietnamese, not English. | did most of my iearning from the book. (The pro'-fessors) seem to speak English too fast,” he said. “Nguyen has only been ‘in the U.S. | three and a half years. He must live “here five years before he can naturalize as a citizen, and in the meantime he ‘said he'll have a hard time finding a company non-U.S. the ie T. Luong Nguyen came from Viet- nam to Ogden in 1982. He learned to speak English in six months, graduated from high school and has finished a math degree in only three years with straight A grades. starve. The second problem is Thai pirates. If they catch a boat they will take some as slaves and kill ne rest,” he said. On this third attempt at freedom he made it to Malaysia, without boat or interested camp in the Philippines.From there, an aunt in Ogden, sponsored his brother, hiring a outstanding graduate in math, a member of Phi Kappa Phi and a Crystal Crest finalist us Scholar of the Year. “But I will stay ee he said. “No other country will accept me, and I think they may kill me if I go back to _ Vietnam.” _ Nguyen said that his father, whom “he has seen only once in the past 11 years, is now out of jail and the rest of his family would like to emigrate to the United States. Once he becomes a citizen he would like to sponsor his pirate problems, and spent four mon- ‘family, he said. ‘I like American ths there before transferring to another | refugee in statistician, even if he was ceciple: I don't ferget my nationality or my identity. I'm still an oriental guy, it shows in my who had brought | face and my hair, butI think I have a }-better relationship with Americans to Utah. than with my own people..1 have very first thing I did when I came my brother bought me a ham-_ good American friends,” Nguyen said. Nguyen works part-time in the WSC and a shake. That is the first | time I ate real American food,” he said. Stewart Library as a book binder. | Nguyen “The here is burger Class of '86 graduated June 13 early 2,000 students will graduate from Suma Corporation. He has been vice president of Bergen Brunswig Corporation, one of the nation’s the college June 13 during the 98th commencement exercises scheduled for the Dee Events Center. | The ceremonies started at 5:40 p.m. with the processional of college faculty and graduates. The pro- panies, gram began at 6 p.m. 1978-85. The college awarded three Honorary Doctorate of Humanities degrees during the exercises to Dr. Rodney H. Brady, former president of the college and currently president of Bonneville International, Moore is the Director of External Affairs at Morton Thiokol’s Wasatch Operations. Sister Francis Forster, president of St. Benedict's Hospital Board of Trustees, and R. Gilbert Moore, principle investigtor and program manager for Gossamer Space Structures at Morton Thiokol and the person responsible for starting the NUSAT project at the college. The three were chosen for the distinction by a committee of community members and college administration, faculty, staff and students based on Dr. Rodney H. Brady major pharmeceutical and health care products comand continues to serve as a member of the Board of Directors of that company. Brady served as president of the college He was born and educated in New from Mexico, graduating from New Mexico State University with a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering. He pursued post-graduate studies in physics and mathematics. Moore joined Thiokol as a disease R. Gilbert Moore of the Rocket Operations Center at the Ogden Center in 1962 and served as general manager of the Astro-Met Division until 1981. He was active in the field of astronomical, atmospheric and hydrological measurement in the U.S., Canada, Norway, their service to the state, the community and the college. David Wright, a graduating senior majoring in English, was selected by the satudent senate to give the student address. Each of the Honorary Degree recipients also made remarks to the seniors. This year’s graduating class is one of the largest in Weber State history and represents almost 20 percent of the 11,000 students enrolled at Weber State. The commencement exercises are open to the public. Brady received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Utah and his Ph.D. in business administration from Harvard University in 1959. He taught at both those schools and served as an officer in the U.S. Air Force from 1959-62. He has been vice president of Management Greenland, Puerto Rico, Brazil, French Africa, India and the South Pacific. Systems Corporation, and served as vice president for administration for Hughes Tool Company, now She is a founder of the Utah Society for Hospital Public Relations and was heavily involved in the for- Guiana, He was the first customer to sign up with NASA for the purchase of a payload space aboard the space shuttle and donated it to Utah State University. He also donated a “Getaway Special” package to the college for the student-built NUSAT satellite which was launched in April of 1985. As a result of this highly successful and visible project, WSC gained international attention and is developing other such satellites to be launched in the future. Sister Francis is president of St. Benedict's Hospital Board of Trustees and is vice president for mission effectiveness of St. Benedict’s Health System. She is regional superior of Mount Benedict Priory, the first Benedictine priory founded in the western region. Sister Francis Forster mation of Hospice of Northern Utah and Birthright. Sister Francis served at St. Benedict's as director of public relations, as the acting head in the medical records department in that hospital, and as director of the radiology department and School of Radiologic Technology at St. Cloud Hospital in Minnesota.