Past Research Interns

Howard Diep

Howard Diep is an undergraduate student at University of California, Irvine double majoring in Political Science and Asian American Studies. He is currently one of Programs Coordinator for the Southeast Asian Student Association here at UC Irvine and a student worker at Zot-N-Go and the Southeast Asian Archive in Langson Library. He aspires be a community organizer to help the Asian American communities across California and help with gang prevention. His community outreach work includes organizing an Open Mic Series in Orange County called Common Ground, a space that cultivates and fosters a positive and safe healing space for artistic growth and community empowerment. The common ground collective builds collaborations across communities and supports the work of social justice spaces. Howard enjoys meditation, relaxing, learning from others and spending time with cherished company.

Khang Nguyen

Khang Nguyen is an undergraduate at University of California, Irvine major in Pharmaceutical Sciences. Upon graduation, Khang hopes to enter graduate school to obtain a Pharm. D degree and start his career in the hospital to treat patients in need of pharmaceutical drugs. Khang became involved in the Vietnamese American Oral History Project after enrolling in the Vietnamese American Experience course taught by Professor Thuy Vo-Dang. Khang’s other passion aside from school is cinematographic film making and helping homeless people in need on Skid Row in Los Angeles.

Julie Huynh

Julie Huynh is a recent graduate from UC Irvine and has a double major in Public Health Sciences and Asian American Studies.

“I want to learn about the processes and practices of documentation and archiving through this internship. I’m most excited about working with this project particularly because of the nature of it, where one gets to learn from so many human experiences. Lastly, I’m hoping that if I can be a productive contributor to this project, I can also be further inspired by ways to directly contribute to my Vietnamese American community.”

Claire Cella

Claire Cella is pursuing her Master of Science in Information Studies at The University of Texas at Austin with a focus on Archives and Digital Information.

“As a current graduate student at the University of Texas at Austin’s School of Information and a former Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in Thailand, I have become increasingly interested in the archives, cultural heritage preservation and engagement with the Southeast Asian community. I had read about the Southeast Asian Digital Archives in an archival seminar last semester and I felt compelled to contact Thuy Vo Dang to see how I could be a part of the work being done at UC-Irvine to document, collect, protect and collaborate with the vibrant and profound ethnic population of this region.”

Pauline Dong

Edison International Intern

Pauline Dong is a fourth year undergraduate student majoring in U.S. History at UC Irvine.

“I’ve always been strongly connected to my Vietnamese American heritage. I believe that preserving history is vital for future generations of Vietnamese Americans to understand so that they can better serve their communities. I believe that VAOHP’s values align with my own, and I am happy to contribute to this project in any way that I can.”