Bridging Cultures Through Service and Engagement

Although she was born in Greensboro, Sandy Thach spoke little English when she entered kindergarten at Frazier Elementary.

Thach (pronounced Thatch), whose family is Cambodian, spoke only their native language — Khmer — at home. She learned English through ESL classes until the third grade. From there, she advanced to Jackson Middle, and after two years at Smith High School, Thach dually enrolled at Greensboro College Middle College.

At the end of her high school career, Thach was offered a total of $304,740 in scholarships and grants from public and private colleges and universities throughout the state and in Massachusetts. She will attend N.C. State University with a combination of renewable scholarships and additional grants. She aims to study political science and hopes to become an immigration lawyer.

 

 

Thach’s high school experience and career aspirations reflect her dual identities.

Cambodian and American.
Community advocate and typical teenager.

While her name, Sandy, sounds very American, her father, Seyha Thach, says her name was chosen with intention. It’s a translation from similar Cambodian and Thai words meaning “a great person.”

“I say I want my kid to be good,” he says. “Not just really good, but a great person.”

Through the years, he’s watched her live up to her name.

For example, her ambitious career goals aren’t so that she can have a nice home or luxury car, but so that she can help others.  

“I chose to study political science because I want to be an immigration lawyer one day or work alongside the government in providing more resources for marginalized communities like mine,” she says.

Knowledge as Power

Thach was uncertain about her college options prior to her dual enrollment at Greensboro College Middle College. She saw it as a chance to challenge herself academically and to distinguish herself.

The middle college program at Greensboro College enabled her to take advanced and college level courses for free. She also became familiar with a campus setting and learned how to interact with professors and complete projects with college students. These experiences help her feel less intimidated about entering N.C. State. She also credits the N.C. A&T State University TRiO program as instrumental in helping low-income, first-generation college students like her with the chance to go on college tours, join summer programs and gain access to resources such as SAT prep and scholarship application assistance.

“It’s a big part of my success,” she says. “It pushed me even more to attend college.”

Seyha Thach credits his daughter for her academic achievements. He arrived in the U.S. with rudimentary English and learned more through ESL classes. He earned his GED and took some classes at GTCC before dropping out after Sandy was born. She was always studious, he says. As a single father, he couldn’t help her much because of his work schedule, but he could count on her completing her homework.

“She was doing it herself,” he says. “That’s why I’m proud, because she was doing it herself and taking care of my son and herself and school too. And she got good grades.”

Seyha says that when Sandy does well in school, it isn’t just for herself, but for the Cambodian people. When the Khmer Rouge, a radical communist movement that ruled Cambodia from 1975-1979, came to power, up to three million people were murdered in what’s known as the Cambodian genocide. Among those targeted were educated Cambodians — teachers, lawyers, doctors, clergy, even people who wore glasses.

You couldn’t be perceived to be smart in order to survive at that time, he says. Because of this, he always emphasized the importance of using education and knowledge to help others.

“When you get knowledge, you’ve got to help Cambodian people,” he always told his kids. “When you go to school, it’s not about yourself. It’s about your family, your community, your country. The community really needs your help.”

Dual Heritage: Cambodian and American

When Thach was younger, she wished her family could be less Cambodian and more American.

Her father raised her and her younger brother as a single dad and often took them to Wat Greensboro, a Buddhist temple serving the local Thai, Cambodian and Lao communities. He volunteered there frequently, cleaning the grounds or helping elders with their green card applications or health care documents.

Sandy, who practically spent every weekend of her youth there, sometimes wished he would take them to places that were more fun.

“I didn’t like the fact that my family was so deep into the (Cambodian) culture,” she says. “I just wanted to be Americanized, and it wasn’t until I got older and I started to realize that a lot of elderly people and younger folks at my temple were struggling.”

So she started volunteering with her father. She began performing cultural dances and translated medical and other important documents for elders. She assisted with voter registration and organized back-to-school supply drives at the temple. Thach even volunteered elsewhere in the state through North Carolina Asian Americans Together (NCAAT), a Raleigh-based nonprofit.

“It was fun connecting with other Asian American kids, knowing that they also appreciate their culture and are willing to learn about Asian history,” she says.

Community Advocate In-Training

She says her dad, who founded the Cambodian Association of North Carolina (CANC), is her most influential role model. In April, Governor Josh Stein recognized Seyha Thach for his work translating the DMV handbook into Khmer to make it more accessible to Cambodians.

“He came to the U.S. in his 20’s. But he’s able to lead his own organization to help other Cambodians who need help — elderly people, young people— and welcoming people who just came to America. He didn’t get the support that he gives,” she says. “Just seeing him do all of that, even though his English isn’t very good, is very inspiring. I’m very proud of my dad.”

Sandy, who also served on the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro’s teen grant making council, worked with teens across the county to learn about philanthropy. Before serving on the council, she and friends had applied for grant to help fund a domestic violence awareness program at the Cambodian Cultural Center of North Carolina. Although she didn’t get the grant,  she says it was a great experience because it led to her learning more about grant making behind the scenes.

Her father says she inherited his desire to help others. Throughout the years he tried to lead by example.  “Sandy has my blood. When she sees somebody in need, she wants to help them. She’s proud to be Cambodian and she’s proud to help people,” he says.