Anh Quach

Student

“If you’re going to transfer, we have one of the highest rates in California. Students at SMC know that, and take full advantage.”

He was born in Vietnam. And when asked if he had any memories of the ‘old country,’ Anh Quach replied, laughing, “I remember zilch because I was awfully young when we left.” But some traditions did travel along with the family when they relocated. “As is the case with most Asian families, education is a very big deal. So I went to a magnet high school for humanities, where I read philosophy and loved it.” And Anh has now found a lively forum for the exchange of ideas in SMC’s Philosophy Club.

“Our club is basically a place for students to discuss matters of importance or issues of the day,” explains Anh. “Philosophy isn’t a study removed from the real world; it’s really integrated with our everyday lives. And like or not, we all make decisions based on our belief systems.” Anh plans on a career in teaching after he earns his degree at UC Berkeley. But this won’t mean the end to his philosophical quest. “I’m also into literature and writing, and I never want a career where I feel stuck or where I’m just working because I need money,” he says. “I want to be in a field that truly involves me in what I love doing. And when you’re a teacher, you never stop asking yourself—and others—questions.”

Anh says that his classes with Christine Holmgren have “helped me enormously to look for the real importance in life. But I’m also studying French now so that I can read Camus and other Existentialists in their original language.” But Anh also reports that many people at SMC are on no less an intense quest for knowledge. “Most people I talk with are very serious about what they’re doing here. And it’s such a great cross-section of humanity that you get to know the whole ‘family of man’ at SMC.”

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