For the First Time, UCI Has a Department Named After a Vietnamese American

December 20, 2025
Tra Nhien/Nguoi Viet

IRVINE, California (NV) – UC Irvine (UCI) will rename its engineering school from "Samueli School of Engineering" to "Hoang Nhu Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science" after Mr. Nhu Huy Hoang and his sister, Dr. Nhu Thi Thuc Trinh, committed to donating millions of dollars to the department.

Mr. Nhu Huy Hoang (center) with Mr. Henry Samueli (left), and Mr. Magnus Egerstedt, Dean of the School of Engineering at UCI. (Photo: UCI Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science)

This marks the first time a department at this university has been renamed after a Vietnamese American benefactor through financial sponsorship.

Mr. Nhu Huy Hoang is a technology entrepreneur and CEO of Nouslogic Telehealth Inc. Dr. Nhu Thi Thuc Trinh is an ophthalmologist and co-founder of Eye-AI Inc. along with Mr. Hoang.

"This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Vietnamese community overseas, so I wanted to contribute to education to encourage students who don't have many opportunities to study smoothly, to have a better environment and conditions for development," Mr. Hoang told Nguoi Viet Daily News.

"I hope Orange County will rise to become a top technology hub like Silicon Valley," Mr. Hoang added.

Mr. Hoang shared that his education was disrupted when the 1975 events occurred, and in 1980 his family came to America and settled in Irvine.

He continued: "I also want to quote Professor Lee Swindlehurst, Distinguished Professor at UCI, that keeping borders open benefits America so that talented people and hard workers can come to live with us."

"I also hope this contribution will help support the student exchange program between the U.S. and Vietnam so that the Vietnamese community can continue to grow globally," Mr. Hoang shared.

Professor Hung Cao, from the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, said: "We are very proud of this wonderful achievement, and it shows the world the contributions of Vietnamese people to the community."

Professor Hung continued: "Because this year marks exactly 50 years, this sponsorship adds even more meaning to the Vietnamese community in Little Saigon and everywhere else."

This donation will establish the "Nhu Family Endowed Fund," a long-term and flexible funding source for the department. The fund will help department leadership pursue long-term goals, with a focus on interdisciplinary collaboration, innovation, and advances that bring practical benefits to society, according to UCI's announcement.

The "Nhu Family Endowed Fund" will support a department that is on the rise. UCI's engineering department currently has nearly 1,700 students and is internationally recognized for achievements in many fields such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, wireless communications, circuits and devices, bioelectronics, computer architecture, and many other disciplines.

Mr. Nhu Huy Hoang (right) and Dr. Nhu Thi Thuc Trinh (beside him) in front of a mobile clinic at a health screening event for the Vietnamese community in Little Saigon in 2024. (Photo: Nguoi Viet) (Article link )

Mr. Hoang has over 30 years of experience in the technology industry and has worked at corporations such as Broadcom – where he worked with Mr. Henry Samueli, and Hewlett-Packard (HP).

Mr. Hoang holds numerous patents in the fields of digital signal processing for images, audio, and communications, as well as system-on-chip design. He has built a reputation for transforming emerging technologies into market-ready solutions that serve the public good.

NousLogic Telehealth, founded by Mr. Hoang, pioneered the development of an AI-powered remote patient monitoring platform that combines wearable devices for real-time vital sign tracking with smart medication dispensing systems, creating a closed-loop medication adherence management solution.

Dr. Nhu Thi Thuc Trinh received her medical degree from UCI's medical school in 1993 and completed her ophthalmology residency at UCI Medical Center in Orange. She currently serves as an adjunct faculty member in the ophthalmology department at UCI.

UCI is one of 10 universities in the University of California system, considered the largest and top public university system in America.

The school has approximately 35 to 43% Asian students, of which about 13% are Vietnamese students.

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