English
The Vuong G. Thuy Papers document the many ways in which Dr. Thuy distinguished himself as a leading educator within the Asian American community. Thuy was born and raised in Vietnam and received an international education in Europe before he came to America in the mid-1960s. He began his teaching career at Cornell University and later taught at Temple University, and became a leading member of the Asian-American community through his association with numerous educational organizations for Indochinese refugees, such as the National Association for Vietnamese American Education, the Indochinese American Council, and the Asian American Council of Greater Philadelphia. The bulk of the material in this collection pertains directly to these organizations.
Vuong G. Thuy Papers,1976-1992
Collection 3017
1 box, 0.4 linear feet
The Historical Society of Pennsylvania
1300 Locust Street
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Vuong G. Thuy was certainly aware of the importance of a proper education, for both himself, and others. Thuy was born in Vietnam, where he was schooled at the University of Saigon. He did his graduate work in England and then went to Paris where he earned a Ph.D. in Linguistics from the Sorbonne. In the mid-1960s, Thuy came to the United States and taught at Cornell University from 1967 to 1970.
During his time at Cornell, he educated Indochinese refugees, who were flooding into America from their war torn homeland. His first project was in 1969, when he coordinated the Indochinese Regional Resource Center at the New York City Board of Education. In 1979 he founded and served as the first President of the National Association for Vietnamese American Education, and did the same three years later for the regional Indochinese-American Council in Philadelphia. These organizations sought to promote educational and economic advancement for Indochinese Americans, while calling for racial harmony among all of the different ethnic groups residing in the United States. Among their many services, these groups provided after-school tutoring, training in English as a second language, literacy, employment training, job placement, health care and recreation. The Indochinese-American Council also was responsible for operating the Indochinese Community Center in the Logan Section of Philadelphia. In addition to serving as an educational and recreational center, the building was home to many Asian and Indochinese refugees.
During his association with the Indochinese American Council, Thuy began a term as a professor of Linguistics at Temple University. He left some time in the 1990s to establish a charter school for "problem" children, whom Thuy felt lacked the proper discipline to succeed in education. The Multi-Cultural Academy Charter School opened in September 1998 in the Logan section of Philadelphia, with a mission to construct a "bridge to success for at-risk high school students from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds" by educating "the whole person, emphasizing tolerance, respect, pride and excellence through the use of strict discipline, small class size, [and] individual instruction."
Dr. Thuy is also the author of numerous publications, including, Vietnamese in a Nutshell (1975), Getting to Know the Vietnamese and Their Culture (1976), The Role of Vietnamese Parents in American Schools (1978), and The Indochinese in America: Who Are They and How Are They Doing (1981). These publications, along with his career and association with numerous Asian American mutual assistance associations, distinguish Vuong Thuy as a leading educator in the Asian community.
The scope of this collection deals primarily with the various Asian-American mutual assistance associations on which Dr. Thuy served and founded, specifically the National Association for Vietnamese American Education, the Indochinese-American Council, and the Asian American Council of Greater Philadelphia. Among the material pertaining to these groups are correspondence, newsletters, conference programs, and orientation handbooks for newly arrived immigrants, written in English, Vietnamese, and Laotian. Other notable items in the collection include the published works of Vuong G. Thuy, including Vai Tro Cua Phu Huynh Viet Nam Tai Hoc Dung Hoa (The Role of Vietnamese Parents in American Schools), and The Indochinese in America: An Unfinished Success Story.
Asia, Southeastern-Study and Teaching
Cambodian American Children
Cambodian American Families
Cambodian Americans
Immigrants-Cambodian-United States of America-Legal Status, Laws, etc.
Immigrants-Cambodian-United States of America-Services for
Immigrants-Laotian-United States of America-Legal Status, Laws, etc.
Immigrants-Laotian-United States of America-Services for
Immigrants-Vietnamese-United States of America-Legal Status, Laws, etc.
Immigrants-Vietnamese-United States of America-Services for
Indochina-History-1945-
Indochina-Politics and Government-1945-
Indochinese Americans
Laotian American Children
Laotian American Families
Laotian Americans
Minorities-Education
Mutual Aid Societies-United States
Refugee Camps-Hong Kong
Refugee Children
Refugees-Government Policy
Refugees-Legal Status, Laws, etc.
Refugees-Press Coverage
Refugees, Political-Vietnam
United States-Emigration and Immigration
United States-Emigration and Immigration Law
Vietnamese American Children
Vietnamese American Families
Vietnamese Americans
Vietnamese Periodicals
Asian American Council of Greater Philadelphia
Indochinese American Council
National Association for Vietnamese American Education
Processed by: Patrick Shea
Processing Completed: May 2002
The original chronological order of this material has been maintained. Some individual folders, however, were overfilled with material, requiring them to be divided among numerous folders. In separating the material, related items were grouped and housed together, while individual booklets and newsletters were given separate folders.
The collection is open for research.
Gift of Vuong G. Thuy, 1991.
Accession number: M91-65.
Multi-Cultural Academy Charter School - Indo-Chinese American Council
http://pw1.netcom.com/~macs/IAC/indo.htm
Greater Philadelphia Urban Affairs Coalition. Profiles: A Directory of Philadelphia Charter Schools, 2000-2001. 2001
Cite as: [Indicate box and folder #s here], Vuong G. Thuy Papers (Collection 3017), The Historical Society of Pennsylvania.
Related collections at HSP:
Nguyen Family Papers (SC 194)
Separated to HSP library
National Association for Vietnamese American Education, National Directory of Vietnamese Resource Personnel, 1980.
Vuong G. ThuyPapers
#-Material written partially in Laotian
##-Material written entirely in Laotian
*-Material written partially in Vietnamese
**-Material written entirely in Vietnamese
%-Material written partially in Cambodian
%%-Material written entirely in Cambodian
11Vuong G. Thuy Booklet - Getting To Know the Vietnamese and Their Culture19761 item
12Vuong G. ThuyBooklet - The Role of Vietnamese Parents in American Schools (**)19781 item
13 New Jersey Association for Vietnamese American EducationCorrespondence from the state chapters (*)1980-198133 items
14 National Conferences on Indochinese Education and Human ServicesPrinted Programs1980-19823 items
15Vuong G. ThuySpeech, The Indochinese in America: An Unfinished Success StoryMarch 19811 item
16Asian American Council of Greater PhiladelphiaIndochinese Orientation Handbook, (English) 19821 item
17Asian American Council of Greater PhiladelphiaIndochinese Orientation Handbook, (Laotian)(%%)19821 item
18Asian American Council of Greater PhiladelphiaIndochinese Orientation Handbook, (Vietnamese) (**)19821 item
19Indochinese NewsletterThu Tin
(*#%)April 19841 item
110Indochinese American Council Correspondence from President Vuong Thuy 1984-198741 items
111Indochinese American Council Booklet, Questions and Answers on U.S. Immigration (*)19851 item
112Indochinese American Council Proposal for The Promotion of Social Adjustment and Economic Self-Sufficiency For Indochinese Youths Aged 16-25July 19871 item
113Philadelphia Asian Community MagazineThoi Moi (**)May 19911 item
114National Association for Vietnamese American Education / National Association for Bilingual EducationBy Laws and Constitutionn.d.1 item