Missing Student Is Compassionate, Dependable

As police continue to search for Michelle Hoang Thi Le, a nursing student who Friday evening after failing to return to her duties at a Hayward hospital, educators at the nursing school she attends said it’s not like her to vanish without telling anyone.

Elizabeth Valente, a spokesperson for Samuel Merritt University, described Le, a San Mateo resident, as a star student who is well known among the faculty for her dedication and dependability.

“She’s always eager to learn more, she’s always the first one to volunteer to stay after hours and monitor as much as she can from other hospitals,” Valente said.

“She is constantly asking questions; she has a close relationship with her faculty. Whenever she has a question she just asks, she doesn’t second guess. According to them, she’s very studious, very passionate about wanting to become a nurse.”

Le, 26, was last seen Friday at about 7 p.m. at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Hayward, located at 27303 Sleepy Hollow Ave. South, where she was due to finish up her clinical rotation that night.

According to Hayward police, her car had been driven out of the hospital parking structure that night, but was found locked only a few blocks away. Calls to her cell phone have gone unanswered.

According to fellow students, Le said she was planning to drive to Reno that night after her clinical rotation ended at the Kaiser facility. But she never came back after the 7 p.m. break.

In a report, police said Le “is not known to have any medical or psychiatric conditions that could account for her disappearance.” Valente’s description of the Samuel Merritt student supported that assessment.

“Michelle is a very compassionate and generous student,” Valente said. “She’s in an accelerated program here at SMU, and she has a passion for helping others, and from what I understand, she’s always wanted to be a nurse.”

Valente said Le is among only 30 students in the 12-month program, and is due to graduate in December of this year.

Samuel Merritt is a small private school with a satellite . Le has taken courses in San Mateo and in Oakland, Valente said.

Meanwhile, loved ones keep up the search on their end, with Le’s family recently for information leading to Le’s safe return.

Online, friends have begun circulating a flier in the hopes that if enough people get the word out, Le will be found. So far, police say they have uncovered no good leads.

“But we have hope,” Valente said. “It’s like a little sister, like one of our own, like a little sister she’s gone missing.”

A Facebook page dedicated to finding Le has been created as well as an event page on the social media site.

Michelle Le is described as 5 feet 6 inches tall with black hair and brown eyes. Anyone with information about her whereabouts is urged to call the Hayward Police Department at (510) 293-7000.