Newsletter 11: Tuning to a single A
1 February, 2024
TL;DR
Sam’s musings about tuning when playing in an orchestra
Read more about the UWC Short Course: Doing Good & Meet the team
Highlights from Sam’s most recent trip to India
A quick visit to Quy Nhon with architects and contractors
Looking for participants in our market research
Please help us spread the word!
Dear Friends,
Last week, social media reminded me that it has been a year since I performed with the Junge Kammerphilharmonie Berlin. During my “adult gap year” in 2022, I based myself out of Berlin for four months until January of last year and ended up unexpectedly joining an orchestra that performs quarterly at the Philharmonie Berlin. I play the viola, and classical music has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember, so it was a spellbinding moment for me.
I have been missing playing in an orchestra these days, and have been listening to quite of bit of symphonies. Now, if you have gone to a live symphony, you will notice that there is always a tuning process that takes place on stage before the concert begins. An oboist will play a long, sustained A, and all instruments—violins, trumpets, clarinets, French horns—will adjust themselves to that A. It is in this collective act of tuning that the foundation for a magnificent symphony is laid.
Since the New Year, I have been engaging in strategic planning sessions with my two amazing colleagues, Sam Lien and Mai. In these moments, I cannot help but think that what we are doing is finding our “A.” If I were to envision our project as an orchestra, each one of us plays a unique instrument, crafting melodies that intertwine and resonate in our own distinct ways. What brings us together, then, are our commitment and willingness to fine-tune and adjust ourselves to this project’s A—namely our mission, vision, values, and goals. As we get ready to play the symphony that 2024 surely has in store for us, I am grateful that we get to deliberately align and tune together. It is during this process where we shape our intentions, refine our purpose, and attune ourselves to our shared endeavor.
Summer 2024 UWC Short Course in Vietnam: Doing Good
There is more information is available for the 2024 UWC Summer Short Course! Please find the PDF version of the brochure below here.
If you are interested in receiving more information about the 2024 Short Course, please fill out this expression of interest form, and the Short Course team will be in touch with more information in the coming weeks.
If you are not a student, but know other 15-17 year olds who might be interested, please forward them this email!
Introducing the Short Course Team
I am thrilled to introduce the three core team members of the 2024 UWC Short Course. They will spearhead the efforts in student recruitment & marketing, logistics, hiring additional facilitators, and essentially running the Short Course!
Kia Ora & Xin Chào, it’s Quang Le, a person learning every day in the learning experience design and student success space. Quang loves designing highly engaging and meaningful learning experiences so students may thrive and grow in their own ways. His philosophy is to help students adopt a lifelong learning mindset, focusing on their long-term development, health, and wellbeing.
Graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Education and Employment Relations & Organization Studies from the University of Auckland in New Zealand, where he worked as a Student Support Adviser, Quang has developed a passion for supporting students from diverse backgrounds to achieve their academic, personal, and professional goals. To reconnect with Vietnam’s education scene while being far away from home, Quang has been working as the Student Success Director at MỞ - Mơ và Hỏi, an online immersive, cohort-based learning project in Vietnam.
Joining the UWC-Inspired Vietnam Campus Project is a huge milestone as Quang will be coming home to Vietnam after years of living overseas. As he enters this new chapter, Quang looks forward to (re)exploring his connection with the motherland and contributing to Vietnam's education scene & its youth, thoughtfully.
Besides education, Quang’s interests lie in arts, music, coffee, and food. If you’re up for an arts and food tour, especially in Saigon, get in touch with Quang for some local recommendations!
Quynh (Erica) graduated from the University of Architecture Ho Chi Minh City with a degree in Regional and Urban Planning. She has worked as an urban planner, academic staff at a university, teacher of English, teacher of creativity at Arkki, and the founder and former president of an academic student club at her former university. Her lifetime goal is to inspire young people, make positive influences, contribute to society and create sustainable communities through education and development projects. Erica is interested in art, architecture, urbanism, literature, languages, writing, reading, traveling, and martial arts.
Phuong loves the excitement and transgressive effect of a creative education. For 5 years, she had been organizing summer camps with Creative Kid Project and CISV International, opening middle-school students up to learning about social issues and doing collaborative work. Her education at UWC Changshu China has committed her to seeing the world from different perspectives and fueled her interest across disciplines of the social sciences and humanities. While majoring in Economics, she took advantage of her Liberal Arts and Sciences degree at Erasmus University College to delve into philosophy, history, and sociology, going down a few rabbit holes in niches like international folklore and combat archaeology. In the future, she hopes to pursue a graduate degree in Education to further investigate contemporary issues in the field and implement more substantial programs to improve education outcomes and social mobility.
Sam’s Trip to India and MUWCI
This month, I got to attend my first Indian wedding! I spent a weekend in Mumbai celebrating a friend’s wedding and drove down to Mahindra United World College India (MUWCI) in Pune to visit Matt Spall, a dear friend and fellow Selection Committee member for UWC Vietnam’s National Committee as well as visit with the Vietnamese students who are currently studying at MUWCI. I will attach some highlights from the trip below as photos:
I’ll surely be back, MUWCI and India!
Team Trip to Quy Nhon
On the last two days of January, myself, Loc, and Mai had the opportunity to visit Quy Nhon with Mr. Hoang Thuc Hao and Mr. Do Minh Duc, architects from the multiple award-winning 1+1>2 studios as well as Mr. Vu Tuan Anh and Mr. Nguyen Duy Thanh, co-founders of GivingVN, a Hanoi-based construction company.
We took a look around the potential sites of the school’s campus and spoke with Dr. Son Tran, Vice-Director of ICISE. Over the next few weeks, we will be working together to come up with a concept design and a rough budget of the of the campus building, a major milestone for the UWC-Inspired Vietnam Campus Project. We are so thankful to have the support of these wonderful and talented individuals!
Market Research: We need your help!
Did you attend high school in Vietnam? We need your participation in our market research!
Whether you're a high schooler navigating your way through classes, a parent enthusiastically cheering from the sidelines, or an individual who care about education, your unique experiences and aspirations are the key ingredients in our recipe to create a school that is attuned to Vietnam's vibrant culture.
We invite you to take a survey to share your high school experiences and help us envision the future UWC-Inspired Vietnam Campus. Your insights will guide us in crafting a dynamic and inspiring school that truly reflects the spirit of the students it will serve.
Ready to make a difference? Just click HERE to get started. Your voice is invaluable!
Please help us spread the word!
Please forward on our newsletter to three people in your life who you know will be interested in what we have been working on.
Looking for more ways to support us? Consider making a donation, volunteering your time and skills, or hosting a fundraising event.
Thank you all for your kind support and interest! Chúc mừng năm mới (Happy New Year) to all as we enter the year of the blue dragon!
Yours,
UWC-Inspired Vietnam Campus Project