2020 Grad Stories: Teej-Shao “Peng” Pheem Yang
May 12, 2020
Building a Health Care Career Around Serving Others
It is hard not to notice Dr. Teej-Shao Pheem Yang, CHSU College of Pharmacy graduate, on campus. He goes by the name Peng, has a nickname of “The Beast,” and always takes the opportunity to sneak a funny face into photos. His larger than life personality brings a certain brightness to the CHSU campus community and he has been a welcoming face to incoming students beginning their pharmacy education journey with CHSU.
Dr. Yang served as a CHSU Student Ambassador for all four years, welcoming new students into the CHSU Doctor of Pharmacy program, assisting with recruitment events, giving campus tours to interested students and their families, and providing insight to pharmacy school hopefuls on what it is like to be in a pharmacy program. He was awarded the Student Ambassador Service Hours Award in 2018 for serving the most hours that year in the program.
“I was part of the student ambassadors in my undergrad at the University of North Dakota, so that’s why I wanted to join the Student Ambassadors at CHSU as well. I really wanted to make an impact or be helpful to these new students.”
He also was a mentor in the CHSU/CVS Health Próspero Program, a pathway program to prepare high school and undergraduate college students for a career in pharmacy. Through this program he was able to share his unique insight on the healthcare system with young aspiring health care professionals.
Throughout his professional career, Dr. Yang served as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) at a nursing home and hospital, a paraprofessional in the special education department helping middle school students succeed in their English class, and a health professional at a non-profit children’s dental clinic.
“I’ve always liked to help people and what I’ve done throughout my career has always been involved with helping people. Whether it was being a nurse aide, whether it was just volunteering, or being an intern pharmacist. A lot of these things involved being in the healthcare industry and for me that’s always been something that I wanted for my career.”
He was also involved in several professional student organizations on campus, like the California Pharmacists Association (CPhA), the American Pharmacist Association Academy of Student Pharmacists (APhA-ASP), the Student National Pharmaceutical Association (SNPhA) and Phi Delta Chi pharmacy fraternity.
He currently works in an outpatient pharmacy in a hospital in Modesto, California. He has his sights set on eventually working his way into an administrative leadership position, or possibly securing a position at a pharmaceutical company. But most importantly, he wants to be able to give back to his family. Dr. Yang grew up in Roseville, Minnesota and while his parents still live in Minnesota, he has a lot of family in the Central Valley and Fresno.
“I am very family oriented. My family and I, when we eat it’s a community family setting with big plates in the middle. When we have a gathering, it’s an open door and we’re inviting a lot of people over.”
He describes a scene in a movie where a son brings his mom up to a grandiose house. When she asks whose house they are visiting, the son replies that it is her house and she’s overcome with emotion.
“I envision myself doing something like that for my mom, because my mom worked very hard too when we were younger. I would like to have a scene something similar like that for my mom so she won’t have to work anymore.”
Dr. Teej-Shao Pheem Yang will be graduating this Thursday, May 14, 2020 with his Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) from CHSU.
The 2020 Grad Stories is a series dedicated to honoring our California Health Sciences University (CHSU) Doctor of Pharmacy graduates and showcasing their accomplishments throughout their time at CHSU while earning their PharmD degree.
