Several students who took part in his year’s commencement ceremonies at CSUN were singled out for special recognition as outstanding graduating students. Among them was Health and Human Development student and 2020 CSU Sally Casanova Pre-Doctoral Scholar Denise Nguyen, who was named as an Outstanding Graduating Senior in 2021. In the fall, Nguyen’s destination is Johns Hopkins. She will study health policy and hopes to later work in Washington, D.C., to help build health care legislation.
This article is abridged from CSUN Today. Read about all the Honored students from throughout campus in CSUN Today.
Denise Nguyen, Outstanding Graduating Senior
Public Health (Health Sciences)
From her late teenage years and into her early 20s, Denise Nguyen was finding herself. Puzzled about what direction she should take, her stay in community college lengthened.
Then, a Type 2 diabetes diagnosis became a startling moment for her. Yet that diagnosis led her to transfer to CSUN to pursue a goal. It also gave her clarity about her future and started a stratospheric rise. Nguyen now hopes that rise will eventually lead her to becoming a leader in the public health industry and a voice to improve health equity.
Nguyen is a first-generation college student. When she enrolled at CSUN, she was largely unaware of how to navigate university life. But she decided saying “yes” to opportunities would expose her to new ideas, help her adapt and help her find who she is. She was right.
In her time at CSUN, the public health major has been a high achiever in the classroom and a star outside of it. In 2019, Nguyen was a member of the nationally recognized CSUN Model United Nations team and a member of the four-person team that won the Best Data Visualization Award at CSUN’s DataJam, for a project with an emphasis on Type 2 diabetes.
In 2020, she was one of 16 CSUN students recognized as a Sally Casanova Pre-Doctoral Scholar by the California State University system. The program provides funding for visits to doctoral granting institutions, travel to national conferences, membership in professional organizations, and graduate school application and test fees.
Nguyen used the application funding, as well as an Alumni Association scholarship, to apply to various universities. She received acceptances from Johns Hopkins University, Columbia University, NYU, USC and the University of Michigan.
Nguyen, a peer health educator at the Klotz Student Health Center and Associated Students senator for the College of Health and Human Development during her time at CSUN, also has made impacts on communities close to her heart.
During the pandemic, her father became unemployed. Recognizing how a language barrier can be a deterrent for some to apply for unemployment, Nguyen, who is Vietnamese, translated and explained each component of the unemployment application to those who struggled with speaking and understanding English at her local community center.
This year, the rise of anti-Asian and anti-Pacific Islander bias and violence also hit close to home, when her father was a victim of harassment. Afterward, Nguyen created a volunteer escort system, where young adults in her community escort elderly Asian Americans safely to their homes or destinations.
In the fall, Nguyen’s destination is Johns Hopkins. She will study health policy and hopes to later work in Washington, D.C., to help build health care legislation.
“CSUN really allowed me to see my potential and capabilities of what I can do with my community,” Nguyen said. “It was a place where I received a lot of support with my ambitions and dreams.”
This article is abridged from CSUN Today. Read about all the Honored students from throughout campus in CSUN Today.
Carmen Ramos Chandler, CSUN Today
SP 2021