Mary L. Phan

Birth, Vietnamese American born in Trenton, NJ, first gen, grew up on food stamps, witnessed gang shootouts far too often, teacher burnout > turnover > many substitute teachers = no stable adult figure in school, experienced things a child should not have - my apologies, is this too forward?

Adolescence, eh you live you learn *shrug*

Adulthood ish, more hardships endured, societal barriers = increased motivation to make systemic changes.

Today, acceptance into graduate school (2020), pursuing my passion to implement mindfulness-based interventions for marginalized youth in public schools. Oh, I am also a Health Policy Research Scholar, no big deal.