Class of 2020: Vincent Cheon

Vincent Cheon

While he was growing up, Vincent Cheon moved between the United States and South Korea. This bi-cultural upbringing helped Vincent adjust to life at UMBC. Vincent has pursued many important, publicly-oriented opportunities as a Sondheim Scholar, both on- and off-campus. He worked as a medical interpreter at Baltimore-area hospitals; served as philanthropy chair of his fraternity, where he was an ambassador for UMBC’s Retriever Essentials on-campus food pantry; and served as a research assistant with Dr. Susan Sonnenschein, a psychology faculty member studying early childhood literacy in low-income families.

Vincent has accepted a position as an Account Executive at NewDay USA, a veteran-owned company that provides mortgages to veterans. In the future, Vincent plans to pursue graduate education and explore more of the world.

Here are a few of Vincent’s thoughts from his time as a UMBC Sondheim Scholar:

What are you most proud of from your time at UMBC?
Making lifelong connections with people who helped me get through college when I was at my lowest. The accomplishment I am most proud of is running a food drive where we collected over 400 pounds of canned goods to donate to a local food bank.

What are your most memorable and favorite experiences as a Sondheim Scholar?
My most memorable service experience was the first all-Sondheim service day in Fall 2016. We planted trees at Cherry Hill Park…it was great but everyone got really irritated because of the heat!
My favorite Sondheim event was the Stoop Storytelling Show

During your time at UMBC, what did you learn about yourself? What did you learn about the world?
I learned to live in the moment and enjoy the process. I learned that I should get used to the feeling of bumping into failure, just enjoy each moment, and learn to overcome those failures. I learned to be lenient towards others and be strict to yourself.