(This is the second in a series spotlighting area veterans.)
If she were to write two words of the day just for herself on her classroom marker board, Tuyen Jackson would probably write “resiliency” and “strength.”
Through both traits (and more), Tuyen Jackson, a culinary instructor at Helms College and Army retiree, moved from a brush with the law as a teen to find success in her life.
“I was lost. I got lost in the streets in California,” said Jackson, a first-generation United States citizen whose parents were from Vietnam. They were working to support their family during that turbulent time in her youth.
The family moved to Michigan in her senior year in high school, and Jackson decided to enlist in the U.S. Army – not completely by choice. At 17, Jackson received a judge’s ultimatum.
“A judge said either you serve in the military, or I incarcerate you,” Jackson said.
Her military experience changed her. Jackson said serving in the military for 20 years, where she rose to the rank of Chief Warrant Officer 3 and serving with mostly males, made her “have to be strong.”
Years later, raising her two daughters, ages eight and 10, made her even stronger.
“Raising two ladies, you have to be a strong female,” said Jackson who added they are her proudest achievement.
But she said some people do not understand something else about strong women. They can’t do it alone. They need partners and mentors.
Jackson found mentors in the military and now finds mentors among her colleagues at Helms College. In turn, she works to be a strong mentor for her students.
Her military career prepared her for her current career at Helms in many ways.
“In the military, I was also an instructor,” Jackson said.
She said her military training in public speaking and dealing with people with different personalities and backgrounds have been assets.
“Learning how to deal with different personalities and communities so that they can understand you was something I learned,” Jackson said.
At Helms, Jackson tends to pick out words of the day.
“One is professionalism. Another is resiliency, for example,” she said.
She models these words of the day and said, “The students see how I move and conduct myself in the kitchen.”
But she did not start as an instructor at Helms College. First, she was a student there. She said she chose the college on Washington Road in Augusta to attend for several reasons, including that it was a convenient drive from her house and that it looked better than other options in the CSRA.
She received her associate’s degree in culinary arts in 2023 as the valedictorian with a 4.0 GPA and became an instructor shortly after that.
As an instructor, she leads hands-on labs in choosing appropriate ingredients, mixing ingredients, baking and other preparation techniques. She also utilizes PowerPoints, role-playing and videos among other strategies.
Jackson said some students can go through the different instructional methods, but when they get to the hands-on methods, she will see the light bulb go on.
She said she is proud of her students’ accomplishments.
“I admire their self-discipline. The way they come together as a group. They put their differences aside and work together,” Jackson said.
Jackson said she learned a lot at Helms College and wants to impart that knowledge on to her students.
“I want to give back what I learned when I went to Helms College. I had great instructors, and they instilled in me set standards. They imparted nuggets of information that I want to give to my students,” she said.
South Carolina author, former teacher and veteran journalist Ron Baxley, Jr. is a social media manager working on a Southern television series. His latest novel, “O.Z. Diggs the Fifth Estate” is available in regional comics shops, bookstores, and gift shops. Reach him at ronbaxleyjr.com.
