Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

3 days ago

Trump Says He’s Willing to Let Migrant Farm Laborers Stay in US

3 days ago

US Electric Vehicle Tax Breaks Will Expire on Sept. 30

3 days ago

Eyeing Arctic Dominance, Trump Bill Earmarks $8.6 Billion for US Coast Guard Icebreakers

3 days ago

Trump’s Sweeping Tax-Cut and Spending Bill Wins Congressional Approval

3 days ago

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

4 days ago

US Supreme Court to Decide Legality of Transgender School Sports Bans

4 days ago

Nvidia Set to Become the World’s Most Valuable Company in History

4 days ago

Poll: 41% in US ‘Extremely Proud’ to Be American, Near Historic Low

4 days ago
Laotian-American Dean's Medalist Eyes Medical School and Serving the Valley
NANCY WEBSITE HEADSHOT 1
By Nancy Price, Multimedia Journalist
Published 5 years ago on
April 29, 2020

Share

Bagieng Keophimphone was in middle school when his father suffered his first stroke and was hospitalized. There were no doctors who could speak Laotian, so Keophimphone helped translate for his father and saw firsthand how language can be a barrier for health care.

Today, there are still very few doctors in the Valley who speak Laotian, but Keophimphone hopes to change that.

The 22-year-old Fresno State senior, who majored in biochemistry and is graduating with a 3.93 grade-point average, has his eye on medical school.

He is one of nine undergraduates at Fresno State who are Deans’ Medalists for the Class of 2020, recognized as the university’s top students for achievements that include academic excellence and community involvement. He represents the College of Science and Mathematics.

Community Involvement

His extracurricular activities include volunteering with the Laotian American Community of Fresno, where he has talked with younger students about the importance of higher education, and serving as president of the American Chemical Society Fresno Chapter.

“Believe it or not, I just liked the mascot. Coming from an immigrant family, you think of America, you think of eagles.”Bagieng Keophimphone

Keophimphone also was involved with the UCSF-Fresno Academic Research program, Tzu Chi Clinic, and the Community Care Clinic, where he worked with a Laotian-American physician, Dr. Khampha Thephavong.

Thephavong, a Fresno State alumna, is director of medical services at the campus Student Health and Counseling Center.

The university will announce in mid-May the name of the President’s Medalist, the university’s top academic honor for an undergraduate student and chosen from the undergraduate medalists.

Football Fan

Keophimphone didn’t always want to be a doctor. In elementary school — he would attend schools in Fresno, Central, and Clovis unified districts before graduating from Buchanan High School — he dreamed of being a football player.

Unlike other kids in the neighborhood who cheered for California teams like the Raiders or 49ers, he was a fan of the Philadelphia Eagles.

“Believe it or not, I just liked the mascot,” he said. “Coming from an immigrant family, you think of America, you think of eagles.”

But as he grew older, he realized that his strength was in academics, not athletics, and focused on his studies.

Going to medical school — or even college — is still an unusual choice for members of the Laotian-American community, who more typically go right to work after high school to help support the family, Keophimphone said. And with few role models in higher education, younger people don’t consider it an option.

Medical Careers Run in Family

“She would always tell me to see how much my mom and dad were struggling in the farm field, and she would just tell me ‘if you don’t want to struggle like how they’re doing, get an education.’ “Bagieng Keophimphone

Keophimphone didn’t have to look far to find another role model, however. One of his older sisters also attended Fresno State and earned a bachelor of science in nursing. She now works for the VA Medical Center in Fresno, he said.

Their father served in the Laotian military, assisting U.S. forces, and the family later immigrated to the U.S. Their parents took jobs as farm laborers to support Keophimphone and his three older siblings.

He said his sister knew that higher education was their ticket to jobs that didn’t involve such hard manual labor.

“She would always tell me to see how much my mom and dad were struggling in the farm field, and she would just tell me ‘if you don’t want to struggle like how they’re doing, get an education,’ ” he said.

Hopes To Stay in Valley

The next step for Keophimphone after he graduates from Fresno State is winning admission to medical school, which has been complicated somewhat by the COVID-19 pandemic shutdowns. Keophimphone says he still needs to take the Medical College Admissions Test, or MCAT, which has been postponed because of the novel coronavirus.

“I look forward to being a part of helping people in general, and especially during this time when everybody is struggling.”  — Bagieng Keophimphone

He wants to stay in California and also stay close to home, so his two top schools are the California Health Sciences University in Clovis, which opens to its inaugural class this fall, and the UCSF SJV PRIME program that includes the UCSF-Fresno campus.

It’s an interesting time in world history to consider a medical career, Keophimphone said.

The COVID-19 crisis “definitely reinforces it. We still don’t have enough medical providers,” he said, referring to the Valley having fewer healthcare providers per capita than other parts of California.

“I look forward to being a part of helping people in general, and especially during this time when everybody is struggling. It highlighted the importance of being able to become a medical provider and being able to alleviate this problem that we’re all going through.”

Profiles of the Other Fresno State Dean’s Medalists

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

How Trump’s ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Will Make China Great Again

DON'T MISS

What’s Caitlin Clark Worth to the WNBA? A Lot More Than Her $78,066 Salary.

DON'T MISS

Trump to Sign Tax-Cut and Spending Bill in July 4 Ceremony

DON'T MISS

Madre Fire Spurs Evacuations Across 3 Counties, Grows to More Than 70,000 Acres

DON'T MISS

Clovis, Sanger, Madera, and Bass Lake Will Light the Sky With Fireworks Shows Tonight

DON'T MISS

Oil Dips Ahead of Expected OPEC+ Output Increase

DON'T MISS

613 Killed at Gaza Aid Distribution Sites, Near Humanitarian Covoys, Says UN

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Authorities Investigating Suspicious Death of Transient Man

DON'T MISS

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

DON'T MISS

Israeli Military Kills 20 in Gaza as Trump Awaits Hamas Reply to Truce Proposal

UP NEXT

Trump Impounds Billions in Education Funding. For Fresno Unified, It’s $7.1 Million

UP NEXT

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

UP NEXT

Poll: 41% in US ‘Extremely Proud’ to Be American, Near Historic Low

UP NEXT

Poorest Americans Dealt Biggest Blow Under Senate Republican Tax Package

UP NEXT

Poll: Most Americans Say National Divide, Political Violence Threaten Democracy

UP NEXT

Trump Pulls Back 150 Guard Troops From Federal Duties in California

UP NEXT

O’Brien Launches Fresno County Schools Chief Campaign by Handing Out ‘Homework’

UP NEXT

Suspect Identified in Ambush Shooting That Killed 2 Idaho Firefighters

UP NEXT

Suspect Identified in Ambush Shooting That Killed 2 Idaho Firefighters

UP NEXT

Despite $49M Deficit, Fresno Unified Gives Top Brass 5% Raise, 3% One-Time Bonus

Nancy Price,
Multimedia Journalist
Nancy Price is a multimedia journalist for GV Wire. A longtime reporter and editor who has worked for newspapers in California, Florida, Alaska, Illinois and Kansas, Nancy joined GV Wire in July 2019. She previously worked as an assistant metro editor for 13 years at The Fresno Bee. Nancy earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in journalism at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. Her hobbies include singing with the Fresno Master Chorale and volunteering with Fresno Filmworks. You can reach Nancy at 559-492-4087 or Send an Email

Trump Calls Musk’s Formation of New Party “Ridiculous” and Confusing

7 hours ago

Fresno DUI Driver Slams Into CHP Motorcycle, Tow Truck on Highway 99

13 hours ago

Russia Downs 120 Ukrainian Drones Overnight, Defense Ministry Says

14 hours ago

Israel Sends Delegation to Qatar for Gaza Talks Ahead of Netanyahu Trip to US

14 hours ago

San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Grows to Nearly 80,000 Acres, 30% Contained

14 hours ago

Musk Announces Forming of ‘America Party’ in Further Break From Trump

14 hours ago

Death Toll From Texas Floods Reaches 59, Including 21 Children

14 hours ago

California’s Politics Drifts Right While New York’s Leans Left

14 hours ago

How Trump’s ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ Will Make China Great Again

2 days ago

What’s Caitlin Clark Worth to the WNBA? A Lot More Than Her $78,066 Salary.

2 days ago

TikTok Building New Version of App Ahead of Expected US Sale, the Information Reports

TikTok is building a new version of its app for users in the United States ahead of a planned sale of the app to a group of investors, The I...

7 hours ago

A logo is displayed over a door at the U.S. headquarters of the social media company TikTok in Culver City, California, U.S. January 17, 2025. (Reuters File)
7 hours ago

TikTok Building New Version of App Ahead of Expected US Sale, the Information Reports

Boxes of aid are stacked as Gaza Humanitarian Foundation said it has commenced operations to begin distribution of aid, in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, May 26, 2025. (Reuters File)
7 hours ago

Hamas Government Office Rejects US Accusation of Involvement in Gaza Aid Site Attack

A volunteer searches for flood victims after deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, U.S., July 6, 2025. REUTERS/Sergio Flores
7 hours ago

Death Toll From Texas Floods Reaches 78, Trump Plans Visit

Tesla CEO and X owner Elon Musk listens as US President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with House Republicans at the Hyatt Regency hotel in Washington, DC, U.S. on November 13, 2024. (Reuters File)
7 hours ago

Trump Calls Musk’s Formation of New Party “Ridiculous” and Confusing

A 22-year-old suspected DUI driver crashed into a parked CHP motorcycle and tow truck on Highway 99 near Fresno, narrowly missing an officer and bystanders, CHP said Saturday, July 5, 2025. (CHP)
13 hours ago

Fresno DUI Driver Slams Into CHP Motorcycle, Tow Truck on Highway 99

A service member of a drone unit of the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade named after King Danylo of the Ukrainian Armed Forces controls a heavy combat drone while it flies over positions of Russian troops, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Donetsk Region, Ukraine June 12, 2025. (Reuters File)
14 hours ago

Russia Downs 120 Ukrainian Drones Overnight, Defense Ministry Says

An Israeli tank maneuvers in Gaza, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, July 6, 2025. (Reuters/Amir Cohen)
14 hours ago

Israel Sends Delegation to Qatar for Gaza Talks Ahead of Netanyahu Trip to US

The Madre Fire near New Cuyama has burned nearly 80,000 acres as of Sunday, July 6, 2025, morning, prompting widespread evacuation orders and warnings across three counties. (CalFire)
14 hours ago

San Luis Obispo’s Madre Fire Grows to Nearly 80,000 Acres, 30% Contained

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend