TROY, Ala. (TROJANVISION) — Troy University Chancellor Dr. Jack Hawkins Jr.’s connections to Vietnam will be the focus of a new documentary being produced by one of TROY’s partner universities in Vietnam.
The film will compare and contrast Hawkins with Duy Tan University Founder Lê Công Cơ. Both men fought on opposite sides of the Vietnam War and now both men are leaders in higher education in their respective nations.
“What excites me is it serves as an opportunity, I think, to show the transformation of the relationships between the two countries, countries that a half century ago were at war,” Hawkins said. “Today not only do we recognize each other, but we’re working in partnership with each other.”
The children of the Duy Tan founder, both leaders themselves at the school, were in Troy to work on elements of the film. They want to highlight both men’s stories from the war and the current relationship between the two schools.
“Every year we have hundreds of students from the Troy program graduated and hundreds of those students actually can get very good position in the economy and contribute to the growth of the country,” explained Duy Tan University Provost Bao Le. “I believe it has been more than two decades in Dr. Jack Hawkins start this in Vietnam so I believe the influence is quite enormous.”
“During this period of time when the world is not at peace that it is good for the students to learn about your perspectives about the world,” explained Vice Provost, Duy Tan University Hang Le. “We don’t live by the world, we live by by examples.”
Hawkins hopes the documentary will shed light on the growth and relationships between the two countries.
“I think our partnership with Duy Tan University goes way beyond education it goes to life itself,” Hawkins said. “Life truly is about relationships and the relationships we share internationally are really important to us because in the long term it will affect our students.”
Le said the documentary is expected to be completed over the next few months and then will be aired on national television and at film festivals in Vietnam. Troy University also plans to screen the film.
