TAM NGUYEN
CHAIRMAN
ADVANCE BEAUTY COLLEGE
WHY: Along with sister Linh, runs beauty school begun by their parents in the 1980s. Serves on the board of the Orange County Community Foundation, is Chairman of the Orange County Transportation Authority and is past chair of the Cal State Fullerton Philanthropic Foundation board of governors.
IN THE NEWS: In June, Cal State University Fullerton announced the first scholarship recipient of the Minh Tâm Nguyễn Endowment Fund for International Education, named after patriarch who fled Vietnam in 1975 and passed away in 2023.
QUOTABLE: His father “got the idea of the beauty college after watching my mom make significantly more money as a beautician doing hair and nails than he did at his job. The other reason he thought of the beauty college was because he was a volunteer for a nonprofit processing a lot of Vietnamese immigrants and saw a need for a transition job or vocation for them. He believed it was important to contribute back to the U.S.” — Leader Board
