BC Board of Trustees Nominate 12 Students for Transforming Lives Award

The Bellevue College Board of Trustees have nominated 12 exceptional Bellevue College (BC) students for the 2020 Washington State Association of College Trustees (ACT) Transforming Lives Awards.

ACT created the Transforming Lives Awards program in 2012 to recognize current or former students whose lives have been transformed by pursuing higher education at a community or technical college.

“This is a wonderful opportunity to honor the hard work, passion for excellence, and drive that these students have exemplified on their academic journey, and we celebrate their success,” said Richard Fukutaki, Chair of the Bellevue College Board of Trustees. “They serve as an inspiration to the Board, and entire BC community.”

“I will be forever grateful to BC for changing the course of my life to make a difference in the world,” said nominee Joedy Morrow. “For any student who may hesitate to enter higher education, I would highly recommend Washington State Community and Technical Colleges to guide them toward their aspirations. Washington’s CTCs provide such a wide variety of programs and opportunities, and their impact on our society is immeasurable.”

2020 Bellevue College nominees include: 

• Kim Chen is a Running Start student who has been accepted into the University of Washington (UW) Foster School of Business.
• Nhu-y Do expects to complete her Bachelor of Applied Science in Molecular Biosciences degree from BC in the next two years.
• Courtney Hoffman, a 2017 graduate of the Radiation Therapy program, earned a degree in Political Sciences from UW before starting at BC.
• Unica Le, a BC graduate, is currently studying Public Health at UW. During her time on campus, she initiated greater conversation and action around the topic, and is currently working on a project to train and support the next generation of student advocates.
• Vitaliy Manchik, a 2018 Radiation Therapy Program graduate, is currently pursuing a bachelor’s in BC’s Medical Dosimetry Program.  
• Joedy Morrow earned an academic concentration in Sustainability, and served as the Environmental and Social Responsibility Representative in student government. Morrow also served as the Student Trustee on BC’s Board of Trustees while working as an intern for Congressman Adam Smith.
• Anush Mughnetsyan earned an Associates in Arts and Sciences Degree in 2018, and transferred to UW where she is pursuing a degree in Geography and Geographic Systems.
• Kati Phillip plans to pursue a bachelor’s in Chemical Engineering with her education from BC.
• Ndayishimiye Priame is pursuing his bachelor’s in Interior Design and expects to graduate from BC this June.
• James Randall served as the Association of Veterans Program Coordinator where his hard work earned him the “Student Employee of the Year” award at the Student Awards Gala. He has since been accepted to the School of Social Work at UW.
• Katherine Sun is a 2018 Radiation Therapy program graduate.
• Lirine Tchachat is currently working on her Bachelor of Applied Science in Molecular Biosciences degree.

Each year, the ACT Awards Committee chooses five awardees from a pool of nominations from the state’s community and technical colleges. The awardees receive $500 from ACT and share their stories during the Transforming Lives Awards dinner held during the ACT winter conference Feb. 17, 2020. In addition to the awardees, all student nominees are recognized during the ceremony and are invited to the dinner.