I'm the only surviving son of refugee parents who fled the genocide in Cambodia. Upon arrival in the United States, my family was placed in a community that lacked resources and had been ignored by city leaders. Crime and gangs were everyday living, role models were those that made a living through illicit means and higher education was never the plan for the majority of us living in my community. Entering the carceral system was a right of passage for many, including myself. At the age of thirteen, I started hanging around with the local teens in the neighborhood where eventually I found myself coming into contact with our justice system. At fourteen years old I decided to drop out of school and try to help my parents with basic needs in our home. That decision caused me to spiral into more contact with the justice system where I spent almost my entire teenage years. My interaction with our legal system continued well into adulthood, due to my inability to obtain meaningful employment that gave me purpose. I decided to complete high school and years later registered for some classes at a community college. A decision that transformed my perception of society and the world as a whole. I don't hide from my past or my upbringing. It's made me who I am today. I no longer blamed myself nor felt sorry for myself because of my mishaps in my younger years. I realized the empowerment and transformative power that education provides. With my own experiences, I have volunteered time to speak at high schools to encourage our younger generations to pursue higher learning and show them that it is possible for us, no matter what setbacks, what bad decisions made, and our circumstances we can and will do great things. I believe in being the change that I want to see in our communities, that is why I still show up and provide our youths with leadership training, and share with them my mistakes in hopes that they won't have to make those mistakes as I have made those mistakes for them already and can tell them what it's like. I value community care and strongly believe it takes the community to support the community. I work at a small community-based organization where I am tasked with locating resources for our community members who are returning home both youth and adults. I have volunteered at the border to provide aid for asylum seekers who have journeyed to our borders and are in dire need of necessities such as food, water, and basic medical aid. I also serve as a City Commissioners for Gang Prevention and Intervention in the city of San Diego. With my degree, I plan on continuing my work in social justice and non-profit spaces. Where I want to continue bringing much-needed change and resources to the most impacted communities. I have chosen to pursue Sociology because it has allowed me to examine my life in a new light. It has given me a deeper understanding of the world and why things are the way they are. I am determined to be a role model for my community and to show that we too can achieve our dreams. This scholarship will help me to overcome the financial obstacles that come with attending a four-year university. With this scholarship, I can pay for tuition, fees, and school supplies without worrying about how to pay bills for the semester. I am grateful for this opportunity to pursue my passions and make a positive impact on my community.

Growing up in an underprivileged neighborhood that had historically been ignored by policymakers, it was challenging to envision a hopeful future. My role models were individuals who made a living through illicit means simply to provide for themselves and their families. There was no one I could look up to in the fields of engineering, medicine, law, or any other profession. In my youth, I could not name anyone I knew who had attended college, either at a community or university level. My life took a turn when I became involved with the legal system at 14, following in the footsteps of those I admired in my community. Trauma was a regular occurrence, both for myself and others around me. However, I made a pivotal decision to educate myself, beginning with a textbook on Sociology. This text offered me a fresh perspective on the reasons why my family, myself, and many others in my community lived as we did. I began to understand why our community lacked resources and opportunities compared to others. From that moment on, I resolved to be the change that I desired to see in my community. I began volunteering for various community organizations, such as the Asian Solidarity Collective and Pillars of the Community, to support events such as tree planting, mental health forums, and fundraisers for community members and their families affected by the legal system. I also worked on youth leadership development and many other initiatives. Eventually, I was offered a position as a Community Organizer, which involved organizing numerous fundraisers, turkey drives, and support for border aid throughout working-class communities. Today, I am the Director of Reentry Initiatives at the Asian Solidarity Collective, where I help individuals returning from incarceration to locate resources that will better prepare them for their transition back into the community. Additionally, I serve as the City Commissioner on Gang Prevention and Intervention for a district in San Diego. My main objective is to have a world free from poverty, crime, violence and to provide hope for individuals who have never thought it was possible. By serving as an example that I never had growing up, I hope to make a substantial impact on the youth in my community and demonstrate that it is possible to live a life free from crime and violence. I aspire to show them that regardless of our circumstances or backgrounds, we all have a place in this world and the potential to achieve greatness. I not only intend to make changes but also to educate others on how crime and violence affect our community and the world at large. It all starts with resources and opportunities such as higher education.

Some easily measure success as the amount of money or which neighborhood one lives in. Success to me is measured a little differently from that. Personal belongings or what my bank account looked like used to be how I measured success. Now, success to me is when I can support those most impacted by the realities of the world we live in. Supporting them and still being able to make a living to support my own family. Success is when I can guide and help my community positively deal with the traumas that they've gone through. When I can get as many people as I can to find stable employment for themselves and their families. It's not enough for me to see myself in a career where I am rewarded by my colleagues, family, and friends. Seeing everyone in my community with the same privileges and access to resources as myself would be a success. I grew up in a family that has lived in poverty for the majority of our lives. I know quite well what it feels like to have nothing but a pair of flip-flops to go to school in. If I could help those that are going through similar circumstances see that it is possible to make it out of poverty and see brighter horizons even if it's simply providing them with a job opportunity. Then to me, that is success. Redefining the Victory Scholarship will provide me with the opportunity to focus more on my pursuit of a Sociology degree, where I will be able to knock on more doors and move up the ladder in my pursuit of Public Service work. By not worrying too much about how much money I have to put aside to be able to pay my tuition and school fees or having to borrow money that I'd have to pay back just to be able to purchase textbooks that are required to attend and complete assignments. Living in one of the most expensive cities in the country can make it challenging to balance a healthy lifestyle, provide for your family, and pursue your education. However, I am determined to overcome these obstacles and create a better future for my community. With the support of this opportunity, I can focus on my studies and work towards a vision where everyone has access to the same resources and opportunities. I believe that with the right leadership, we can fight for basic human rights, such as housing, medical care, and a life free of suffering. By earning a degree from a university, I can connect with influential policymakers, philanthropists, and investors who share this vision and can help make it a reality. I am confident that together, we can build a better future for all. Success means nothing to me if others are not living a happy and meaningful life too. I refuse to consider myself successful as long as children are starving and suffering in my community. True success, in my opinion, is when everyone in my community is free from the traumas that haunt them, free from illnesses, and no longer reliant on harmful substances to numb their pain. We must work tirelessly towards this goal and ensure that everyone in our community is taken care of and treated with the respect and dignity they deserve.

I come from a family of refugees who fled the genocide in Cambodia. We were relocated here to the United States. Not knowing how to speak the language or having an understanding of the culture of the United States and having nothing but the clothes on their backs my parents did what they could to raise us in a community that was ignored by policy makers and our government. We grew up in poverty where eventually I made some bad decisions in my life and ended up involved with gangs, substance abuse, and crime in an attempt to support myself and my family. I wound up in the legal system where I've spent a total of 22 years incarcerated beginning at 14 years old. During my last period of incarceration where I spent nearly 13 years, I made a decision to educate myself and started taking correspondence college courses while still in prison in an attempt to better myself before returning to society. Shortly after my release, I applied to San Diego State University (SDSU), a school that I thought I would never be able to attend because of how I grew up. But I was accepted and am now studying Sociology. It is not a common theme to see someone from my neighborhood attend SDSU, many of the folks that I grew up with are surprised to learn that someone with my background of poverty and involvement with the legal system can attend SDSU. I have demonstrated that it is possible for us to educate ourselves in an institution such as SDSU no matter what mistakes we've made in life. This scholarship will offer me the opportunity to continue to pursue higher education and give back to the community I come from. I work full time while attending school as well as trying to raise a family. This scholarship will take some of the financial hardships that I've encountered while trying to obtain a college education for myself. With the completion of an undergraduate degree, it will push me forward in my pursuit of an MSW where I will continue to help uplift my community and those most impacted by poverty, mass incarceration, and addiction. It is imperative that our community have someone with the lived experience to come back into the community and help those who need it most. Not only will those with lived experiences be able to connect with the targeted demographics but we'll be able to have a sincere understanding of the struggles and what it took to get out of it.

I am a formerly incarcerated Cambodian who come from a poor family. I grew up in a community that has very little resources and school was not a dream for many of us. I spent most of my adult life incarcerated due to some wrong decision making. Being both Cambodian and formerly incarcerated puts me outside of the margins of those that are well represented. I will be the first from my family that will have attended and graduate college. I do not hide from my mistakes. I truly believe I am not my mistake and will be an example to those from my neighborhood that it is possible for us to chase our dreams and obtain a better future. No matter our circumstances. Being formerly incarcerated has a huge impact on how we as formerly incarcerated will move forward in the work force due to the stigma attached to those who have a record. Many doors will and have closed on me due to my record. From job opportuinties, housing and licensing. With a higher education degree it will demonstrate that my mistakes does not determine who I am or who I will be. Given the opportunity, I can and will succeed and elevate in life. I am capable of achieving greatness and make changes in the society that we live in. Change can be most impactful when it comes from those directly impacted by it. I am a community organizer with a non-profit communtiy organization. I've been working with and alongside folks that have been and are currently impacted by our legal system. Providing the neccessary resources that many who return home after incarceration can not locate due to various reasons. I locate whatever resources that are available here in San Diego and do the outreach for those returning citizens in order to make their reentry less stressful. I do this because I know all too well how being impacted by our legal system causes barriers for many who return home and to our communities. By creating and streamlining the resources that are available will make it that much more reachable and less stressful. Which will provide a better chance of our returning community members to be responsible and successful citizens. I understand how it is to be underrepresented and pushed out by society because of our past mistakes. With that knowledge and experience, I will be the change that is needed to help other underrepresented citizens navigate a system that was set up for us to fail.