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Never Giving Up, Always Giving Back

Bruin bear mosaic
A gift to UCLA’s Asian American Studies Center creates the Nhat H. Tran, M.D. Scholarship to help students with disabilities achieve their goals in academics and in life.

After suffering from Guillain-Barré syndrome, Nhat Tran ’97, MPH ’17 refused to let disability discourage him from reaching his full potential. Tran’s experience inspired him to become a doctor, establishing his practice and enhancing his expertise with a master’s from UCLA Fielding School of Public Health.

Tran’s story is another example of how Bruins — not content only to overcome their own obstacles — help others do the same. His recent gift to UCLA’s Asian American Studies Center creates the Nhat H. Tran, M.D. Scholarship to help students with disabilities achieve their goals in academics and in life. “I hope to inspire disabled students that through perseverance, they, too, can accomplish whatever they put their hearts and minds to,” he says.

Paying the Past Forward

Giving back through a scholarship holds special significance for Tran. More than two decades ago, the biology undergraduate received a scholarship from John E. Anderson ’40, longtime friend of the university and eponymous donor for UCLA Anderson School of Management. Anderson himself received a scholarship to attend UCLA, a story he often shared as he supported the next generation.

“At a luncheon, I thanked him and asked how I could repay his generosity,” Tran recalls. “He told me that if I’m able in the future, that I should pay it forward and help other young students.”

By following suit, Tran is continuing the cycle of student success at UCLA, one Bruin to the next.

To learn more, contact

Christi Corpus310-794-2396

Published March 2018

Dr. Nhat Tran poses with Marjorie Kagawa Singer at a luncheon.

Dr. Nhat Tran with Marjorie Kagawa Singer

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