Philanthropic Foundation Board of Governors
Tam Nguyen ’05
Board Chair
President
Advance Beauty College
A Force for Community and Entrepreneurial Leadership
Through decades of tangible actions and meaningful results, Tam Nguyen's name has become synonymous with professional dedication, community service and unparalleled educational commitment in Orange County. With significant achievements, he stands as a testament to the power of education, hard work and community involvement.
Public Service
Tam Nguyen has been an influential professional in enhancing Orange County's transportation programs, projects and plans, serving on the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) board of directors since April 2021. He was selected as the vice chairman of the OCTA board, overseeing an annual budget of $1.7 billion. His leadership also has guided the $2.1 billion I-405 Improvement Project — California’s largest freeway project — toward its scheduled completion by the end of 2023. The 16-mile of new freeway and express lanes will benefit hundreds of thousands of motorists through one of the nation’s most traveled stretches.
Nguyen is a member of the OCTA Transit Committee that approved the agency to provide no-cost bus passes for all youths 8 to 18 in Orange County. He also is a member of the Metrolink board of directors that oversees America’s third-largest train service with nearly 550 miles of rail service in Southern California.
Educational Leadership
At the heart of Nguyen’s achievement is his role as chairman and owner of Advance Beauty College. With campuses in Garden Grove and Laguna Hills in Orange County, Calif. and in Boston, the nation’s premier institution for the nail industry proudly has graduated more than 50,000 professionals in the beauty industry. Its cutting-edge program with multilingual instructions in English, Spanish and Vietnamese is an industry beacon. Nguyen's leadership has not only fostered educational excellence but continues to cultivate professional competencies for those who are not fluent in English.
The success of Advance Beauty College is evident as most of its graduates excel in the beauty-care industry, many becoming prosperous small-business owners. Nguyen’s success was nationally recognized in July 2020 when the American Association of Cosmetology Schools honored the college as the top beauty school in the country. This accolade is not just an acknowledgment of the students but also a testament to Nguyen’s and his team's strategic pursuit of excellence. Under Nguyen’s 23 years of leadership as the president and CEO of Advance Beauty College, the college was recognized as the leading manicuring (nails) program in the U.S.
In addition to his leadership at Advance Beauty College, Nguyen extends his expertise to budding business professionals as a faculty member teaching business management at California State Fullerton since 2016. His alma mater holds him in high regard. Nguyen served as a past president of Cal State Fullerton’s Alumni Association and was a founding president of the Vietnamese American MBA alumni chapter. He is the current chairman of the Philanthropic Foundation Board of Governors. His dedication earned him the prestigious Cal State Fullerton Vision & Visionaries Award in 2015, which is the highest honor bestowed representing over 300,000 alumni and community honorees.
Community Engagement
Tam Nguyen’s involvement extends beyond academia. He currently holds significant positions in several community organizations, notably as the board member of MemorialCare Orange County Hospitals (including Orange Coast Medical Center and Saddleback Medical Center), board of directors for Orange County United Way and board member of Cal State Fullerton’s Center for Family Business. Nguyen’s commitment to the community is further evidenced by his active roles with the Garden Grove Community Foundation board member/past president, Project Vietnam Foundation, the US Bank Orange County Advisory Board, founding Board member of Genesis Bank, board member Genesis for Good Foundation, past chairman of the Vietnamese American Chamber of Commerce, Chairman Small Business Diversity Network, board member of the Pro Nails Association and is a member of OCTA’s Diverse Community Leaders Group.
One of his most notable endeavors is as a co-founder of Nailing It For America, a volunteer initiative that, during the pandemic, successfully delivered more than 1.2 million personal protective equipment, valued at about $30 million, to healthcare professionals, frontline workers and vulnerable members of the community. Nguyen also was on the front lines with Nailing It For America to combat anti-Asian hate. Both responses to COVID-19 and anti-Asian hate generated hundreds of headlines from local, regional, national and international news outlets, including the Nguoi Viet Daily News, BBC, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, ABC, NBC, FOX and CNN.
Nguyen’s resilience and determination are rooted in his personal history. A Vietnamese refugee, he arrived in California with his family at the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. From those challenging beginnings, Nguyen and his family in Fountain Valley, Calif. have established a foundation in the Little Saigon community of giving back locally and globally, setting an example for other partners to join in many campaigns that have made a difference in the lives of countless people, setting a high bar for excellence in service and philanthropy while inspiring others to join the force for good.
