Hi everyone from the SEO-Vietnam community,

My name is Nhat Anh Le (or Nate) and I am interested in applying for SEO-Vietnam (SEO-V) Board of Director’s position, specifically in External Relations & Fundraising Board Subcommittee. I am hoping that with your signatures, I would have the opportunity to be interviewed by SEO-V’s committee. I believe that my background as an US-based SEO-V alum and my desire to give back to the organization would let me be a great fit for this position.

As a mentor for the SEO-Vietnam NPO Case Study, I had the opportunity to learn about the challenges in funding and alumni retention that SEO-V faced. The response rate from our Impact Matrix Result was lower than expected, and class participation rate was lower for the older class members. Our organization also required an increase in funding to support new initiatives, which would require alumni’s support. As such, I believe that I can give my support by focusing my effort on building the community of SEO-V alumni in the U.S.

Many alumni from the SEO-V program in the U.S. gained acceptance to the world’s most competitive academic program and hold positions in multinational firms. These individuals, if given the opportunities, are incredible sources of talents that would be able to provide expertise, mentorship and financial support to the next generations of SEO-V participants. Yet it felt like retaining and fundraising from the US-based SEO-V community remained a challenge.

I believe that one of the reasons was the location of the SEO-V alumni in the U.S., where they had limited opportunities to build and retain their connections with the organization (since most of the activities were based in Vietnam). If I had the opportunity to work on the External Relations & Fundraising, I would try to strengthen the U.S. community whether it is through local chapter, Day of Giving, or networking events.

Another reason why I want to contribute as a board member is my aspiration to give back to SEO-V. SEO-V gave me an opportunity to learn from my summer internship, training program and network of like-minded individuals, so I would love to pay it forward to future SEO-V participants, so they can at least enjoy the same opportunity that I had. I am also inspired by the recent SEO-V Career Conference, as Leo and other alumni showed how they can transform SEO-V missions to a successful career conference that had more than 2,500 participants. My hope is that I would be able to grow beyond and contribute my effort to SEO-V’s mission, and expanded the organization’s impacts to more pre-professional college students in Vietnam.

Thank you for your consideration and patience! I am grateful for your support.

Nhat Anh Le (Nate Le)