Driven by perseverance and determination, Susan Le pursues sociology to uncover the root causes of inequality. She is committed to breaking barriers and advancing a society where equity is not an exception, but the norm.
Growing up, Susan watched her grandmother endure long journeys from their countryside home to the city, where essential medical care was available but never accessible. These experiences revealed the human cost of systemic inequality. From them, she learned the importance of questioning structures that deny equal access and opportunities. They pushed her to confront uncomfortable truths and to challenge systems that perpetuate injustice. Such lessons continue to fuel her pursuit of sociology—not as a mere academic interest, but as a pathway toward justice.
Susan is an IB Diploma candidate (Class of 2026) and serves as Director of the 2025 Youth TEDx Calmette Conference in Ho Chi Minh City. She coordinated speakers and curators from her school and seven international schools, securing sponsorships from both Vietnam and the U.S. At school, she contributed to an award-winning Group 4 project that designed a sustainable seed-bombing strategy to restore Nevada’s Great Basin. Beyond the classroom, she leads Enlighten, a nonprofit dedicated to rural education in Vietnam. As president, she raised $1,300 to distribute over 2,000 notebooks, supply hundreds of students, and reach more than 200 rural learners in a single season—an effort that demonstrates her ability to turn vision into measurable change.
Susan aspires to attend leading universities where she can deepen her study of sociology and social policy, equipping herself with the tools to dismantle inequality both locally and globally. She envisions a future career amplifying marginalized voices and building systems that foster equity and justice.
