Former Vietnamese exchange student continues education in U.S.
By ROWENA PLETT
Staff writer
Khanh Do (pronounced "can dough"), a citizen of Vietnam, was an exchange student at Centre High School in 2004-05. Her host parents were Marcus and Peggy Carlson.
Classified as a junior, Khanh decided she wanted to remain at CHS for her senior year and continue her education in the U.S.
But there was one major obstacle. After her year as an exchange student, she would be classified as an international student and would be required to pay thousands of dollars in tuition.
When Superintendent Bob Kiblinger was apprised of the situation, he looked at her resume and said she had met all requirements for a high school diploma except senior English. He said he had the authority to waive that requirement, which he did.
Khanh went on to two years of pre-pharmacy training at Emporia State University. Last fall, she was inducted into the University of Kansas School of Pharmacy. She was one of 105 students accepted out of 430 applicants.
Khanh said the subject matter is difficult but she likes the challenge.
Whenever she has a break, she usually spends it with the Carlson family.
She likes to travel around the United States and see the sights. She has visited Maryland, Washington, D.C., and New York City.
Khanh was involved in a youth group at Twelfth Avenue Baptist Church in Emporia. She said about half of the group was made up of international students. One year during spring break, the group traveled to Louisiana to help restore houses damaged by Hurricane Katrina.
Khanh currently is taking a driver's education class in order to obtain a driver's license. She plans to get a car and drive to California with a friend this summer.
Choosing pharmacy as a career was easy for Khanh. Both of her parents are pharmacists in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon), so she grew up around the profession.
She has a younger brother. Her grandparents live in the country and raise rice and fruit.
After Khanh graduates from college, she plans to practice pharmacy in the United States for a few years and then return to Vietnam.
Khanh has developed an interesting 25-minute PowerPoint presentation on modern-day Vietnam. It gives a broad overview of the life of the Vietnamese people.
She has shown it to numerous 4-H clubs, high school students, and other groups. She also has presented it at Rolling Hills Zoo west of Salina.
The presentation recently was recorded by Gene Winkler of G&J Video, Marion. It will be broadcast repeatedly from 1-4 p.m. Friday on the local cable channel, MCTV, Channel 22.
