I noticed this post on my Facebook feed and felt compelled to share it with a wider audience. The Northwest School has 509 students, 70 of whom are international, including some from Viet Nam. Shalom (שלום), MAA Dear Parents and Families: Sadly, I write yet again to acknowledge and denounce acts of hate and violence that … Continue reading Teaching Tolerance: A Facebook Message from the Head of School, The Northwest School (Seattle, WA, USA)
Commentary
Visa Issuance Rate as Institutional Selling Point (or Not)
Note: This post is devoted exclusively to the US student visa for the obvious reason that it has the most irrational and unpredictable process of the top host countries for Vietnamese and other international students. This is heartfelt advice to US colleagues, especially higher education, who have their work cut out for them these days … Continue reading Visa Issuance Rate as Institutional Selling Point (or Not)
Secondary Sector in USA Still Going Strong
As I mentioned in the last post, there are nearly 30,000 Vietnamese (29,788, to be exact) studying in the US at all levels. (Source: Mapping SEVIS by the Numbers, August 2018) Of those, 3,472, or 11.7%, of them are enrolled in boarding and day schools. While that's 720 fewer students than in December 2017 (4,192 … Continue reading Secondary Sector in USA Still Going Strong
Viet Nam Once Again Ranks 5th in US International Student Enrollment
According to the August 2018 SEVIS by the Numbers update, Viet Nam once again ranks 5th among places of origin with 29,788 active students at all levels and in all 50 states and Puerto Rico, inching past Canada, which had displaced it in June 2018. (One always has to take summer statistics with a grain … Continue reading Viet Nam Once Again Ranks 5th in US International Student Enrollment
When in Viet Nam, Drive as the Vietnamese Do!
An expat shares some philosophical reflections and practical tips on the free-for-all that is Vietnamese traffic. This is my latest English language article for VNExpress International. Follow this link to read it in its entirety. Below is the unabridged version: In any country, driving culture and etiquette, or a lack thereof, is a window into … Continue reading When in Viet Nam, Drive as the Vietnamese Do!
“Humpty Dumpty” As World View, Overseas Vietnamese-Style
Here are the concluding paragraphs of my latest CounterPunch piece. If you're interested in reading the essay in its entirety, follow this link. If Humpty Dumpty – as world view and personal identity – were to have a great fall, I’m afraid it would be exceedingly difficult for all of the king’s horses and men … Continue reading “Humpty Dumpty” As World View, Overseas Vietnamese-Style
Snowplow Parents: A Global Phenomenon?
Here's a story you don't see every day though there are probably countless more than are reported in professional Facebook groups. Mommy and Daddy know best. These parents are interchangeably referred to as lawnmower or snowplow parents,. Their (dis)service to their children is to remove every obstacle in the latter's path. Think of it as … Continue reading Snowplow Parents: A Global Phenomenon?
VOA Connect: Telling America’s Story
The Internet is chock-full of ironies. Tragically, Celia Barquin Arozamena, an international student from Puente San Miguel, Spain, was brutally raped and murdered earlier this week in the US heartland. Sadly, that, too, is part of America's Story. Click on the image to read this VOA report. Peace, MAA
The Latest Fake News on Vietnam
Follow this link or click on the image to read a 12 September 2018 article version of a blog post I wrote on 12 August 2018. Peace, MAA
Political Incest
Let's say you were a sniper in Iraq, and you had 20 confirmed kills. Years later, you realize the entire war was a Lie because Saddam Hussein had nothing to do with September 11th and Iraq never had any weapons of mass destruction and the U.S. Government knew it all along. So, as an American … Continue reading Political Incest
An International Educator in Vietnam 
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