Vanguard University

Alex Lin is the Chair and an Assistant Professor of the Liberal Studies Department. Born in Texas, as the eldest of three boys. His family moved to Taiwan briefly before settling in San Mateo, CA.

“Seeing my Dad as a Chemistry Professor at Baylor University persuaded me to not want to go into education or become a Professor originally,” Alex remembers. “He was pretty strict on us and would assign us extra chemistry homework at home.”

After completing his undergraduate degree, Alex enrolled in law school before teaching English in Tokyo, Japan. He came back to California teaching in public schools for 10 years. In 2014, he finished his PhD in Education at the University of California Irvine where he met his wife, Kristen.

“I was going to a small start-up church while I was in Irvine and I was actually in the same credential program as her,” Alex reflects. “Our first date was at the movies seeing Christopher Nolan’s Inception. I’m kind of a movie buff so we had a movie discussion afterward and I kind of knew she was the one from there since she could listen to me analyzing every detail of the film.”

They have two daughters, Olivia (4) and Sophia (1), and reside in Rancho Santa Margarita. As the lead of his department, Alex hopes to bring more scholarship opportunities for Vanguard’s graduate program. He also wants to create a board game club for students and faculty. His favorite board game is called the Island of Catan.  

“I have a soft spot for students who were like me growing up not always interested in doing well in school. I was inspired to become an educator because every student is a unique puzzle where I get to tinker around and figure out how to help them achieve their highest potential.”

Vanguard is thankful for Alex’s heart to serve and train the next generation of educators. We are excited to see the academic opportunities that he leads his department into in the future.