Tam was born and raised in southern California where she earned her B.A. in Economics from the University of California, Riverside. She began her education career through Teach For America in Washington D.C. as a middle school math teacher where she earned her Master’s of Arts in Teaching. She worked for Friendship Public Charter School and the District of Columbia Public Schools. She moved to Los Angeles to be closer to family and worked for Animo Watts, a Green Dot Public Charter School. In 2014, Tam found her new home in Las Vegas where she explored many types of development and training to support the teachers and leaders she works with to reach their full potential. Prior to working for Opportunity 180 she worked with Teach for America, TNTP, and Achievement Network. Her time in those organizations was spent working alongside birth through 12th-grade teachers, coaches, principals, and district leadership to improve instructional outcomes for students from historically marginalized backgrounds. Recognizing the systemic barriers school districts and school leaders face, she joined Opportunity 180 and leads the program team by working collaboratively with her colleagues, partners, and our community to ensure all students and families in Nevada, especially our most underserved, have access to great public schools and people in those schools who are deeply committed to their success.

Outside of work, Tam stays involved in her community by serving as a founding board member for a local Public Charter School, supporting committees focused on improving education, and coaching a Girls on the Run team. Tam is driven by her vision of working alongside people in the community she calls home so that kids of color, first-gen college kids, and kids from low socioeconomic backgrounds have many adults in their life supporting them to reach their full potential.