LHS Graduate, survivor & leader

http://www.mortuary.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/1028265/airman-survives-war-torn-youth-in-africa/

A Tale Of Two Worlds

By Connor Lang

Editors Note:  This story is Part I of a series on immigrant and refugee students.

Lowell, MA- Imagine being set in a new life. Distant from your past of ease and wealth, you have been placed in the dead center of a world unfamiliar and aggravating.

 Phuc (She prefers Phie) Nguyen is an immigrant student who has thrived academically at LHS.  Phie is a funny, hardworking, and understanding individual. She speaks of her life in Vietnam. A good job, an advanced education, and plans for the future. Not persecution, not lack of schooling and not poverty.

“I grew up in a middle class family and I was really upset when my mother decided to move our family to the United States,” says Phie about the move to a new country.

In Vietnan Phie’s family had money and a strong backbone, her mother. Her mother kept the family together and always provided emotional and family support. Phie doesn’t exactly know why her mother wanted her family to come to the U.S. The lives that they would leave behind were just so great.

“It was so great in Vietnam. My job, my life, my everything. I don’t know why my mother wanted us to move here,” Phie Explains.

In Vietnam, Phie would have liked to study and become a lawyer because of her skilled thinking and generally sassy ways. But now, she feels as if her english speaking skills don’t even compare to her Vietnamese. Thus, her dream of becoming a lawyer may be broken. The medical field is an option now, the path loved by every parent. But, is it really what Phie wants to do with her life?

Phie tells of Vietnam, beautiful and peaceful compared to crumby ole’ Lowell, Massachusetts. She hides it well, but moving to America was a huge step backward. 12th grade classes had been taught in the 6th grade. Working at a local mall was almost fun. The only downside seemed to be not having as much time to hangout. But, Phie describes her experiences as nearly ideal. The U.S had seemed like uninhabitable lands and Phie couldn’t come to terms on why her mother was making her move while they had currently been living semi-perfect lives. 

Now that you know a little bit about Phie, and maybe even have a better understanding of her life than me, but here’s the breakdown of her story. Phie is like a character in the wrong book, a prodigy of the wrong calling, a player of the wrong sport. She doesn’t show it, but she may be trapped in the wrong life.

Motivations of World Migration

ELL Students from Ms. Lander’s Class Share Personal Stories

By Cornell Grinkley

<p><a href=”https://vimeo.com/170906805″>Motivations of World Migration</a> from <a href=”https://vimeo.com/user48151229″>Matthew Brennan</a> on <a href=”https://vimeo.com”>Vimeo</a&gt;.</p>

ELL students from Ms. Lander’s History class recorded their oral histories and shared their motivations to migrate across the globe.

My Grandmother & Great Grandmother’s Sacrifice

By Fallone Ikary

 

Yay and Tha: My Grandparents Now Part II

By Serianna Chan

Yay and Tha: My Grandparents Then Part I

By Serianna Chan

Carney Medalists announced 2015

Lowell, MA – Lowell High School announced six Carney Medalist recipients for 2014-2015 school  year today.

The Carney Medal is an academic award, which businessman James Carney established in 1859,  presented to students in their senior year for excelling in academic disciplines.  It is one of the oldest co-educational awards bestowed on American high school students in the country.  Since 1859 three men and three women have received the award each year from Lowell High School.

The 2015 recipients include Penhleakhena Ou, Jenny Phan, Alexandria Panagiotakos, Shaughn Pender, Danny Ouk and Steven Maglio.

The medals will be awarded at the Lowell High School Commencement ceremony on June 3, 2015.

The headline picture of James Carney is part of the Lowell Historical Society archive.

A good cook and a good friend: that’s my mom

By Vy Pham

My family consists of 4 people: my mom, my dad, my brother and me.  In my family, mom is my closest friend.  But now, my mom is staying in Vietnam because she wants to take care of my grandparents.  This year my mom is 37 years old.  Maybe my mom will come to the USA in a few years.  She is a resourceful person. She’s a very good cook too.  Her favorite food is fruit and she doesn’t like sweets.  Although she doesn’t like sweets she still makes very tasty cakes, especially Vietnamese cupcakes.  I really miss my mom so much and her cooking.

My Mom Then and Now

“…I missed her voice, her face and every moment she spent with me in Cambodia.”

By Vi Bott

I would like to tell you about my mom.  I lived with her in Cambodia for 13 years.  And when I was 14 she left me.  She left me because she need to come here to United States. I was so sad when my mom did not stay with me in Cambodia. When she comes to the United States, she would call me but I was still crying.  When I talked to her I was crying because I missed her voice, her face and every moment she spent with me in Cambodia.  When she came here I started to be really bad.  I would skip class because my Khmer teachers were not respectful to me. When my mom didn’t’ stay with me, I never listened to my sister.  I’m so lazy when she gave me to buy something for the family and she always told my mom.  But on November 22 , 2014 everything changed because my mom came back to get me.  My mom and I came to United States together. I was really happy and sad too. I was sad to leave my friends but it’s happy because I can live with my mom and sister.  So I left my dad and three siblings.  Now I can have whatever I want.  I’m really happy too when I can study at a good school with a respectful teacher.  I appreciate my mom even more now.  I love her because she is a perfect loving mom.

My Friend Shreejana

I lived in a refugee camp in Nepal with my dear friend, Shreejana.

By Yamuna Karki

My friend is very beautiful and kind.  Her name is Shreejana.  She lives in Nepal.

Shreejana is 14 years old like me.  And she goes to high school in Nepal.  She has six family members, a mom, a dad and two younger sisters.  Shreejana also has one older brother.  She loves her family very much.

I miss her a lot. I shared everything with her when I was living in Nepal.  When I felt sad, or needed help I asked her and she was always ready to help me.  We played, read, ate, and also conversed together every day. Now, sometimes I call her and talk to her on a phone.  She tells me that she misses me so much too.