Tai Nghiem is a lover of languages, literature and culture.

The Naperville Central High School junior grew up in a multicultural household with his twin brother, Tien. At home, they switched between speaking English, Thai and Spanish. Their parents speak Vietnamese and Thai, but family friends — who often stepped in to help with childcare — introduced the boys to Spanish.

“I actually used to sleep with books instead of animals when I was a young kid,” Tai, 16, said. “I felt literature was really important and I found that I was able to read bilingual books in Spanish and English, and I feel that that gave me a dual perspective.”

As the boys got older, they knew they wanted to use their language skills and cultural experiences to make a difference in their community. Growing up, they not

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