School of Information Sciences

Nhek receives scholarships, promotes cultural awareness

[image1-right]LEEP student Christina Nhek was recently named the recipient of two scholarships, the Asian Pacific American Librarians Association or APALA Scholarship and the California Library Association or CLA Scholarship for Minority Students in Memory of Edna Yelland.

Nhek, the daughter of Cambodian refugees, is currently pursuing a master’s degree and certificate in special collections at GSLIS. She plans to focus on the preservation of culture through photographs, taking a close look at the tangible artifacts that survived the Cambodian genocide of the 1970s under the Khmer regime.

“My parents called me their ‘freedom’ baby,” said Nhek. “I was born shortly after they immigrated to the U.S. after fleeing Cambodia. They suffered great atrocities during the genocide. My family was forced to work intensive labor among thousands of others in the countryside under the Khmer Rouge regime. They endured starvation and witnessed the death of family and friends. Their culture needs to be preserved, and their stories need to be told. Photographs can tell that story.”

In applications for both scholarships, Nhek discussed her commitment to promoting the importance of Khmer cultural awareness within the community and helping other Cambodians by providing good library services to enrich their personal and educational growth.

Nhek, a 2012 Spectrum Scholar, received her bachelor’s degree in art history from California State University, Long Beach (CSULB). In addition to studying special collections, she also has interests in archives and public librarianship.

Updated on
Backto the news archive

Related News

Olalere receives HSLI Jira Scholarship

Precious Olalere, a doctoral student in information sciences, has been awarded the 2025 Helen Knoll Jira Scholarship from the Health Science Librarians of Illinois (HSLI). This award supports individuals pursuing education in library or information science in Illinois, especially those focusing on health science librarianship.

Precious Olalere

Student Spotlight: Daria Meshcheriakova

BSIS student Daria Meshcheriakova came to the iSchool with intention. Originally from Russia, where she lived for 17 years, Meshcheriakova moved to Chicago and attended Harold Washington Community College before transferring to the University of Illinois. Among potential universities, Illinois proved to be the best fit.

Daria Meshcheriakova

iSchool researchers present at ILA 2025

School faculty, staff, and students will present their research at the 2025 Illinois Library Association (ILA) Annual Conference, which will be held on October 14–16 in Rosemont. The theme of this year's conference is "You Belong Here."

Get to know Jade Carthans, BSIS student

Jade Carthans is interested in how human-centered design, machine learning, and data analytics can come together to solve critical problems that impact organizations and individuals. She gained firsthand experience in these areas through internships with Microsoft and State Farm.

Jade Carthans

Ravury selected to serve on Homecoming Court

BSIS student Lauren Ravury has a new item to add to her resume: member of the 2025 Homecoming Court at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Ravury's resume is already impressive. She serves as president of the Student Alumni Ambassadors (SAA), an organization dedicated to fostering school spirit at the U. of I. Last year, she served as president of the Asian Pre-Law Association, a stint that led to her receiving the Outstanding Asian & Asian American Undergraduate Student Leader Award from the Asian American Cultural Center and the association being named the 2025 Outstanding Asian & Asian American Student Organization.

Lauren Ravury

School of Information Sciences

501 E. Daniel St.

MC-493

Champaign, IL

61820-6211

Voice: (217) 333-3280

Fax: (217) 244-3302

Email: ischool@illinois.edu

Back to top