Speakers
Ms. Sinara Sagn
Founder of ScholarSpace
Title: Purpose and Grit
Sunday, March 1
09:00 AM PST, 12:00 PM EST
ZOOM
ID: 934 9082 0559, Passcode: 669635
Her Story
Nara is a social entrepreneur, business consultant, and human capital development advocate dedicated to strengthening Cambodia’s next generation through access to education and opportunities. She currently serves as CEO of Khmer TV, Program Manager at The Cambodian Family, Chief Business Officer and Co-founder of Toptimize, and Founder of ScholarSpace.
With a focus on building strong human resources and empowering youth, Nara leverages innovation, technology, and strategic partnerships to expand educational access and economic opportunities across Cambodia. Her expertise spans incubation programs, business scale-ups, startup support, and professional development.
She is also Co-founder of the Wellbeing Advancement Organization and Youth Advancement for Development (ពន្លកយុវជន), Founder of the Chevening Bootcamp Initiative, and a founding member of Women4Women. Through her work as a business coach and venture builder, Nara is committed to equipping Cambodian youth and entrepreneurs with the skills, resources, and networks they need to thrive.
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Mr. Chankrisna Chea
Founder of ReanKhmer
Title: From Intel to Impact: Building the World's First AI-Powered Khmer Learning Platform
Saturday, March 28
06:00 PM PST, 09:00 PM EST
ZOOM
ID: 934 9082 0559, Passcode: 669635
His Story
Chankrisna Chea has built a strong educational foundation in computer science and wireless communications that underpins his long career in advanced platform engineering. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Royal University of Phnom Penh, followed by a Master of Science in Wireless Communication from National University. To stay at the forefront of emerging technologies, he has continually expanded his expertise through extensive professional certifications, including advanced machine learning, deep learning, reinforcement learning, and AI/ML programs from DeepLearning.AI and Stanford-affiliated platforms.
Professionally, Krisna brings over 15 years of experience spanning software engineering, wireless systems, platform validation, and engineering leadership. At Intel, he progressed through roles including software validation engineer, wireless protocol test lead, tools lead, software architect, and ultimately engineering manager. In this capacity, he led cross-functional and cross-geographical teams responsible for validating next-generation client platforms across domains such as AI, power and thermal management, processor cores, memory, and wireless technologies. Among his notable achievements are co-founding Intel’s ISO-17025 certified conformance lab—saving over $20 million in testing and certification costs—and deploying LLM-powered Debug AI systems that reduced issue triage time from days to minutes while improving platform quality and time-to-market.
Beyond technical execution, Krisna is recognized for combining deep engineering expertise with strategic leadership, people development, and innovation. He has driven large-scale test automation initiatives that cut execution costs by more than half, led AI-enabled validation modernization efforts, and consistently improved organizational engagement and delivery outcomes. Outside of industry, he is deeply committed to community service—serving as Vice Chair of the Cambodian American Community of Oregon, volunteering as a Khmer language teacher, advising Cambodian startups through UNDP initiatives, and supporting agricultural technology training in Cambodia. Together, his career reflects a blend of technical excellence, leadership impact, and dedication to giving back through education and global community development.
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Prof. Monkol Lek
Associate Professor of Genetics
Yale University
Title: Living with a Rare Disease: My Journey as a Cambodian Refugee to a Genetics Professor
Saturday, April 25
06:00 PM PST, 09:00 PM EST
ZOOM
ID: 939 7936 6382, Passcode: 563026
His Story
Dr. Monkol Lek has built a multidisciplinary educational foundation that bridges engineering, biology, and medicine. He earned his undergraduate degree in Computer Engineering from the University of New South Wales in 2000, followed by additional undergraduate degrees in Science (Physiology) and Engineering (Bioinformatics), graduating with the University Medal in 2007. He later completed a PhD in Medicine at the University of Sydney in 2012, where his doctoral research examined the functional differences between alpha-actinin-2 and alpha-actinin-3—work that laid the groundwork for his long-term focus on muscle biology and genetic disease.
Dr. Lek’s career has been defined by major contributions to human genetics and rare disease research. He is widely recognized as the lead author and primary analyst of the Exome Aggregation Consortium (ExAC) project, published in Nature in 2016, which transformed how researchers interpret human genetic variation by aggregating and analyzing large-scale exome sequencing data. He also led the analysis team for the Broad Center for Mendelian Genomics, where he played a key role in international collaborations that resulted in the discovery of novel disease-associated genes, particularly those linked to limb-girdle muscular dystrophy and other rare neuromuscular disorders.
Currently, Dr. Lek is an Associate Professor of Genetics at Yale School of Medicine and is affiliated with Broad Institute. His laboratory focuses on developing computational and statistical methods to analyze genomic data for rare disease diagnosis and gene discovery, including work with the Rare Genomes Project. Motivated in part by his own diagnosis with limb-girdle muscular dystrophy, Dr. Lek integrates patient experience with scientific rigor, making his work influential not only in advancing genetics research but also in improving outcomes for individuals living with rare genetic conditions.
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Dr. SreyRam Kuy
Surgeon, Writer, Researcher, and Healthcare Executive
Baylor College of Medicine
Title: Building a Career in Medicine and Health Policy
Date: Saturday, August 29
06:00 PM PST, 09:00 PM EST
ZOOM
ID: 934 9082 0559, Passcode: 669635
Her Story
Dr. SreyRam Kuy's remarkable journey began in the aftermath of surviving the Khmer Rouge regime and a bombing in a Thai refugee camp, which inspired her to pursue medicine after being treated by a Red Cross surgeon. After resettling in the U.S. with her mother and sister, she pursued a strong academic path, earning dual bachelor's degrees in Philosophy and Microbiology from Oregon State University. She went on to receive her M.D. from Oregon Health & Science University, completed her general surgery residency at institutions in Texas and Wisconsin, and later earned a master's degree from Yale as a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar. She also enhanced her leadership expertise through a health policy program at Brandeis University.
Dr. Kuy has held several influential positions across clinical care, healthcare administration, and government service. She led initiatives to improve veteran surgical care at the Overton Brooks VA Medical Center, and as Louisiana's Chief Medical Officer for Medicaid, she implemented opioid-prescribing reforms that significantly reduced prescription rates. At the federal level, she served as Associate Chief of Staff at the Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center and held advisory and leadership roles in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, becoming the first woman appointed as Deputy Under Secretary for Health for Community Care. In academia, she has taught surgery at Louisiana State University and Baylor College of Medicine.
Beyond medicine, Dr. Kuy is a published author and health policy thought leader, contributing op-eds to major media outlets and authoring the widely respected textbook 50 Studies Every Surgeon Should Know. Her numerous accolades include fellowships, national leadership awards, and honors such as the Presidential Leadership Scholar, L’Oreal Paris Woman of Worth, and recognition from the Aspen Institute. Her work reflects a deep commitment to healthcare innovation, public service, and improving patient outcomes nationwide.
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Prof. Khatharya Um
Associate Dean and Associate Professor of Ethnic Studies
UC Berkeley
Title: TBD
Saturday, September 26
06:00 PM PST, 09:00 PM EST
ZOOM
ID: 910 6894 0280, Passcode: 386853
Her Story
Dr. Khatharya Um is Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Social Sciences Division and Associate Professor in the Ethnic Studies Department at University of California, Berkeley. She is a founding faculty member of the Asian American Research Center and core faculty in Global Studies, the Center for Southeast Asian Studies, the Institute for International Studies, and the Institute for European Studies. Her leadership advances interdisciplinary scholarship, equity-driven research, and institutional transformation across campus and beyond.
Dr. Um earned her PhD in Political Science from UC Berkeley, where she was also the Chancellor’s Distinguished Postdoctoral Fellow. An internationally recognized scholar, her work centers on Southeast Asia and Southeast Asian American studies, migration and critical refugee studies, and social justice. She has authored and edited numerous publications, including Departures, From the Land of Shadows, Globalization and Civil Society in East Asian Space, and Southeast Asian Migration, contributing significantly to diaspora and transnational studies.
Her research on Southeast Asian American educational and health disparities has shaped policies and community-based initiatives. A pioneer in Cambodian refugee and diaspora studies, her scholarship has helped establish the field in the United States and internationally. Beyond academia, she has founded and served on boards of refugee-led organizations and has received the Fukuoka Academic Laureate Prize and the Berkeley Chancellor’s Award for Advancing Institutional Excellence and Equity for her impactful scholarship and community leadership.
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Dr. Sokhom S. Pin
Vice President of Biology at Superluminal Medicines
Title: Khmer Soul, American Dream
Date: Saturday, October 31
06:00 PM PST, 09:00 PM EST
ZOOM
ID: 914 4287 7413, Passcode: 226979
His Story
Dr. Sokhom S. Pin is a pharmaceutical scientist and drug discovery leader with more than two decades of experience in neuroscience and pharmacology. He currently serves as Vice President of Biology at Superluminal Medicines, Inc., where he leads biological research efforts focused on developing innovative therapies. Prior to this role, he was Senior Director and Head of In Vitro Pharmacology–Neuroscience at Cerevel Therapeutics in the Greater Boston area. His work centers on neuroscience drug development, including efforts to address cognitive impairment and Parkinson’s disease.
Dr. Pin received his undergraduate degree from Johns Hopkins University in 1997 and later earned a Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University of Connecticut. While pursuing his doctoral studies, he balanced full-time professional responsibilities and family life, supporting three children. His academic training provided a strong foundation in pharmacology, medicinal chemistry, and drug discovery.
Over the course of his career, Dr. Pin has contributed to cancer research at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and worked at DuPont Pharmaceuticals, which was later acquired by Bristol-Myers Squibb. He has authored more than 30 research publications in medicinal chemistry and pharmacology, including work on lipopeptide agonists and CGRP receptor antagonists. His contributions include advancing the drug candidate ALTO-101, which received FDA Fast Track designation for treating cognitive impairment, and supporting the development of Tavapadon at Cerevel Therapeutics. Dr. Pin is also recognized for mentoring scientists and leading translational neuroscience research that supports the development of innovative therapies in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries.
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Prof. Vuthea Chheang
Assistant Professor of Human-Computer Interaction
San Jose State University
Title: From A Poor Rural Village in Cambodia to a Professor in the Silicon Valley
Saturday, November 28
06:00-07:00 PM PST, 09:00-10:00 PM EST
ZOOM
ID: 984 3443 4367, Passcode: 529705
His Story
Dr. Chheang is an Assistant Professor in human-computer interaction, virtual and augmented reality, and medical visualization at San Jose State University. He did his postdoctoral work at the University of Delaware and worked as a research scientist in the Virtual and Augmented Reality Group. He earned his doctoral degree from the University of Magdeburg, Germany, a Master of Engineering in Computer Science from Chungbuk National University, South Korea, and a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science and Engineering from the Royal University of Phnom Penh, Cambodia. His research focuses on interaction and visualization techniques in human-computer interaction, collaborative virtual reality, and medical visualization systems that support medical planning, training, and inter-professional team collaboration.
The journey...
"I think I've come this far as I've gone step by step, dreaming of a wider future. I couldn't have done it without Korea's help."
There was a boy who was born and raised in a poor rural village in Cambodia. He helped with field work during the farming season and sold fish and fruits on his free days, but now he is a professor who studies artificial intelligence (AI) and virtual reality (VR) in the heart of Silicon Valley, working on research and nurturing his younger students. Professor Butea Cheang, the first Cambodian to be appointed to San Jose State University, a prestigious U.S. state university, in July, is the main character.
Professor Cheang was the second of six siblings and was born in Kampong Travek, a small rural village about 90 km from Phnom Penh, Cambodia's capital. "My father drove a motorcycle taxi, and my mother made a living by selling fish and fruits," Professor Cheang recalled. "My parents are of a generation that suffered from war and massacre, and they worked hard with the belief that they should study their children even though they were not properly educated."
The small desktop computer my uncle bought me in high school became the first turning point in Professor Cheang's life. My curiosity grew by fiddling with computers, and I decided to go to college and study computers in earnest. Professor Cheang entered the Royal Phnom Penh University, Cambodia's top university. During the day, he worked as an editorial assistant at an information technology (IT) magazine and wrote, and continued his four-year life of taking night classes from 5 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the evening. "After the second grade, I worked as a web development intern and collected my salary to buy a small laptop," he said.
Another opportunity came for him, who was about to graduate. It was an HRD center established in Cambodia by Korean IT company Webkesy. The HRD Center is an institution established in Phnom Penh in 2013 to train software (SW) experts, and it selects IT students from prestigious universities through rigorous tests and intensively trains them with IT-related skills such as Java and databases for a year. It provides employment opportunities by transferring Korea's SW technology to excellent IT majors in Cambodia. Professor Cheang said, "I remember the time when I rode a motorcycle and memorized Korean words for Korean classes."
He was noticed by Kim Tae-kyung, a professor at Chungbuk National University who was the director of the HRD center, and after graduating from the HRD center, he went on to a master's program in the Department of Computer Science at Chungbuk National University. Professor Cheang said, "As Cambodia suffered from the war and is still having a hard time, I really wanted to visit Korea, which has grown rapidly through education after the war," and added, "Thanks to the HRD center, I was able to realize my dream of studying abroad and visiting Korea."
After completing his master's degree, he was also offered to enter a doctoral program in Korea, but he moved to Magdeburg University in Germany because he wanted to study in the wider world. After doing medical VR research here, he moved to the United States as soon as he received his doctorate. After working as a postdoctoral researcher at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, he was appointed as a professor of computer science at San Jose State University in July this year.
Currently, he is conducting research to incorporate extended reality (XR) and human-computer interaction (HCI) into medical-related technologies. In Germany, VR for surgical training related to liver and biliary tract was developed, and in Livermore, digital twins were studied. When a VR headset is worn by combining the two technologies after becoming a professor, AI assistants present improvement measures related to the medical situation, and experts join the virtual space to develop a medical collaboration platform to help solve problems.
He reiterated the power of education throughout the interview. Just as Korea has been growing rapidly through education, he stressed that education is a bridge to go wider. Professor Cheang said, "I want to return the precious opportunity I received to students," adding, "I want to lead students to realize the true value of education and use new technologies such as AI in the right way."
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