Saranjit Somsakul

Torrance Adult School

Nominated in 2022

Saranjit Somsakul is an immigrant from Thailand. She came to the United States two years ago with her husband of five years for a better life. Soon after her arrival, she found two jobs to support her family in Thailand and her family here in the United States.

Knowing she had minimal English skills, Saranjit decided to enroll in the ESL classes at Torrance Adult School (TAS). While attending classes, she heard about the Allied Health programs that TAS offers. She enrolled in Medical Terminology and Pharmacy Tech - two Allied Health Program courses. At first, Saranjit was skeptical about her ability to pass the courses. On a daily basis, Saranjit faced the challenges of learning new vocabulary words and medication names that consisted of many Latin and Greek root words. Despite learning a new language, being an ESL student, and working two jobs, Saranjit was able to receive A’s in all her quizzes and assignments.

Saranjit has completed her externship at Walgreens in Torrance, obtained her California State Pharmacy tech license, and is on her way to becoming a Pharmacy Technician. One day, she hopes to become a pharmacist and continue to live the American dream.