This story is part of a series of profiles the Ventura County Office of Education is presenting about outstanding graduating seniors in the Class of 2022.
He hasn’t even graduated from Adolfo Camarillo High School yet, but Hans Bach-Nguyen has built an enviable resume that spans five pages. In addition to stellar grades and test scores, it lists an impressive array of activities and achievements.
When the Ventura County Medical Center was running short on personal protective equipment during the pandemic, he helped coordinate an effort to make hospital gowns. For his project to become an Eagle Scout, he built planter boxes at the new kidSTREAM children’s museum in Camarillo. And every summer, he travels to Vietnam with the Good Samaritan Medical and Dental Ministry to provide free care to rural residents. He’s also volunteered for the Red Cross, participated in Junior State of America, and served as a tutor for fellow students. After earning admission to several top universities, he settled on Harvard, where he’ll be enrolling this fall.
Of all his accomplishments, one that he’s most proud of is his advocacy for educational equity and racial justice. He’s played an instrumental role in the growth of a student-powered group called Justice in the Classroom. He worked on planning a district-wide equity conference, analyzing data to create a Diversity and Inclusion Report, and helping Justice in the Classroom expand to high schools throughout Ventura County.
With much of his high school experience clouded by the COVID-19 pandemic, Hans is inspired to pursue a career that addresses deficiencies in our public health system. He plans to major in applied mathematics and minor in global health or one of the social sciences. He hopes to find work that combines his love of math with his passion for making positive change. “I’d like to be someone who can improve our healthcare system using data,” he says. He also wants to be part of the battle against medical misinformation and help restore trust in public health institutions that have come under fire during the pandemic.
As he prepares to graduate, Hans says his involvement with social justice issues has made him a more open-minded person. “I recognize that living in Camarillo and coming from an upper-middle-class family, I’ve had a lot of privilege and opportunities that others don’t have access to,” he says. “Public school has definitely helped me in my pursuits, and I hope it will do so for every student in the future.”
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