International student first to win LCC's Scholastic Achievement Award
Lower Columbia College gave a Scholastic Achievement Award to an international student for the first time at its commencement ceremony Thursday evening.
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Gia Han Huynh, an LCC student from Vietnam, received the Academic Transfer Scholastic Achievement Award.
"At first I thought it was just a little thing," she said, "but then people kept congratulating me."
LCC names three Scholastic Achievement Award recipients instead of a single valedictorian. The award winners represent the academic transfer, professional technical and bachelor's programs.
Huyhn said she came to LCC partly because it's accessible to people without high school diplomas, like her. When she enrolled, she had only completed school up to 10th grade.
She aims to attend medical school and study cancer biology.
The other Scholastic Achievement Award recipients were Skyler White and Simon Hwang.
White is graduating with a bachelor of applied science in organizational leadership and technical management. He is a first-generation college student who earned both his high school diploma and associate's degree at LCC.
Hwang left a white-collar corporate job to earn an associate of applied science in welding at LCC after discovering he preferred working with his hands. He now plans to pursue a career in welding and fabrication.
Decorated cap
A Lower Columbia College student wears a decorated cap at the commencement ceremony Thursday, June 18. White and gold cords designate a Running Start student with a GPA of 3.5 or higher.
Over 100 Running Start students graduate
The student speaker for the ceremony was Mara Slabu, a Running Start student and executive director of the Associated Students of LCC. She is also team captain of the Fighting Smelt speech and debate team, and was named 10th best IPDA debater in the nation.
Slabu earned an associate degree in biology from LCC and graduated from Mark Morris High School at the same time. She was one of six valedictorians at Mark Morris and maintained a 4.0 GPA at LCC.
Running Start is a state program that allows high school juniors and seniors to take courses at LCC or other community and technical colleges. Students earn both high school and college credits, and do not need to pay tuition.
There were 162 Running Start students scheduled to graduate Thursday, LCC announced in a press release. In total, it was set to award 866 credentials, including 64 bachelor's degrees, 705 associate degrees, 23 certificates and 74 high school diplomas.
LCC had 521 Running Start students enrolled in the 2024-2025 school year, according to its yearly report. The report estimates that almost one-fifth of all high school juniors and seniors in Cowlitz and Wahkiakum counties took Running Start classes at LCC that year.
LCC also awarded a posthumous associate in arts degree to Ameera Van-Dolah. Van-Dolah was a member of the Fighting Smelt, an assistant volleyball coach and a peer mentor at LCC's Diversity and Equity Center.
Her mother, Dyna Van-Dolah, accepted the degree on her behalf at the ceremony.
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This story was originally published June 19, 2026 at 12:33 PM.