Hyunjun Nam Named 2026 Phi Theta Kappa Global Leaders of Promise Scholar
The Middlesex College student and Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society member was selected based on leadership potential and will receive a $1,000 scholarship.
(l-r): Vice President of Student Enrollment Services José Laureano, Vice President of Academic Affairs Dionne Miller, Hyunjun Nam, Middlesex College President Mark McCormick, Vice President for External Affairs, Communication, and Advancement Joananne Coffaro.
An aspiring nurse and Allied Health Pre-Professional major, Middlesex College student Hyunjun Nam was named a 2026 Phi Theta Kappa Global Leaders of Promise Scholar, receiving a $1,000 scholarship to help offset his tuition.
“I was in Korea this summer traveling with my family when I heard the news and I just started screaming,” said Nam smiling. “My family wanted to know what was happening and I said I had gotten a scholarship. It’s a big relief for me.”
The Leaders of Promise Scholarship is sponsored by the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation and is available to Phi Theta Kappa members from outside of the United States.
Nam, 21, was born in Incheon, South Korea and now lives in Bergen County with his sister. His father, JaeCheol, is a meteorologist and his mother, Sunok Bae, has been a teacher, a nurse, and a tutor.
After graduating from high school in South Korea, Nam started working in the orthopedic ward at Hallym University Kangnam Sacred Heart Hospital. Although the work was challenging, he was determined to succeed.
It was his sister Suhyun’s advice to come to America and get on a nursing track.
“My sister was living in Edison and I asked her what school to go to. I was supposed to go to Bergen Community College, but she said I wouldn’t learn English because there are a lot of Korean students there and she told me Middlesex College had the best medical program,” Nam said. “So that’s why I chose here. I think it was a great decision.”
Nam first had to learn the language. He took a year of ESL classes in 2024, then enrolled at the College in 2025. But on the first day he remembers crying in a bathroom after his first class because of the language barrier—especially daunting with the precise instructions a nurse must follow.
But Nam soon connected with the Middlesex College community, joining the Multicultural Club, which helped him with learning English and making friends who connected him with Phi Theta Kappa.
Nam’s English is much improved and his confidence is soaring. He’s on track to graduate in May 2027 and wants to continue his education in a longer nursing program.
“I feel like the professors and the faculty here are all so nice,” Nam said. “You can ask questions all the time, and you get kind answers back. The teachers here want you to grow and succeed.”
