Project update: Meet our students !
Our apology for the delay in providing these detailed updates on our students. As you will read below, collecting the information for each student is both a joy and a challenge. We hope that you will share our pride in the accomplishments of the students in our higher education program.
Over the past year, our college program has grown from the original 6 students . The transition form high school to college is a challenging one in any culture, and this has proven to be true with our program. From 15 original candidates, over the past year some of our students were not able to successfully make that transition, leaving us with a current core of 11 college students , all but one now aged 18-23
Eight of our students are from rural Prey Veng Province . These have successfully made the transition from a close knit rural life style in a thatched house with no electricity or running water to life in the capital city, Phnom Penh, despite many challenges and temptations.
All of the original 6 students from Prey Veng Province have been able to advance into their second year. We have added two more students from Prey Veng, for a total of 8 . Of these 8 students, four of the students are able to attend college in Phnom Penh because of our additional support to them of housing, board and part time employment. Three of our college students came from our AIDS Patient Family Support Program.
One of our students , is age 24 and a Buddhist monk.
In addition to these 11 we also support one high school student age 16 with room, board, tuition and part time employment . Beyond these students, we support the education of the children in our AIDS Patient Family Support Program.
All of this is possible because of you, our generous donors. Thank you. Together, we are changing the world, one life at a time.
Our current roster of college students:
1. Dararith (male) age 24, is studying law at Build Bright University in Phnom Penh and will be entering his third year this fall. Dararith came to our college program via our Aids Patient Family support Program in 2000. Three years ago, Dararith became a Buddhist monk to honor his deceased parents. In addition to his duties as a Buddhist monk, Dararith took time to instruct his follow monks in English and mathematics at the pagoda where he lives.
2. Thierry ( female) age 20 studies psychology at the Royal University of Phnom Penh ( RUPP) . She is in her third year studying to become a psychologist. Thierry came to us via our Aids Patient Family Support Program and in addition to her studies worked for some time as a volunteer in our program for severely disable children at the city orphanage.
3. Srey Poch ( female) age 19 is studying Banking and finance at the Royal University of Law and Economics ( RULE) and hopes to become a banker after graduation. Srey Poch came to us via our AIDS Patient Family Support Program which had supported her family from 2002. She is an excellent student and throughout elementary school , middle school and high school ranked near the top of her class .
4. Serey ( male) age 21 is an “A” student, also studying Banking and Finance for a Bachelor’s Degree at Human Resouces University . Now in year 2, he will spend 2 more years until graduation. After graduation, he wants to pursue a career in banking or as a business owner. Serey comes from a family of peasant farmers, neither his mother or father have any formal education. He has 5 siblings. Serey works as an assistant dance teacher and also performs maintenance tasks at Champey academy. Serey acquired his knowledge of traditional Cambodian dance through our dance program the district high school .
5. Laiy ( female) age 20 studies nursing at the Royal Scientific Institute of Health ( RSIC) which is located in the outskirts of Phnom Penh. Now in year 2, with one more to go, after graduation Laiy will work as a mid wife at the Center of Health in Phnom Penh. Laiy was an exceptional student in high school. Her mother had a 4th grade education , her father an 11th grade education, which was unusual for a farmer.
6. Youu, ( male) 23 is a strong “B” student, studying Banking and Finance for a Bachelor’s Degree at Human Resources University . Now in year 2, Youu will spend 2 more years at university. After graduation he wants to work in banking. In addition to his studies, Youu helps at the Champey Academy ( our dance program) as a junior t dance instructor and assists with maintenance . You’s father died when he was born and Youu’s mother has a 5th grade education He frequently travels home to Prey Veng province to help his mother tend their small farm.
7. Sdoeurn ( female) age 22 studies at accounting at Vanda Institute in Phnom Penh. Now in her second year, she has a career objective of becoming an accountant in a bank. Sdoeurn works part time at our dance school . Sdoeurn showed unusual initiative, borrowing money from a micro lending institution to finance her first semester of college in 2012 before entering our program. One of 8 children, Sdoerun shows great promise.
8. Ty ( female ) age 19 is a first year student at the National Institute of Business ( NIB) studying Banking and finance and English. Now in year 1, she will complete her studies in 3 years and hopes to work for a bank.
9. Sokha (male ) age 23 is a student at Human Resources University studying Banking and Finance. Now in his second year, he needs 3 more years to complete his degree. Sokha, was a member of our traditional arts troupe at Baphnom High School where he was recognized as a very talented musician. He was also a member of our Prey Veng Green Champions program. Sokha’s parents are peasant farmers , his mother reached grade 5 and his father has no formal education. Sokha is undecided yet on a career, but has thoughts of becoming a teacher. Sokha plays the “ roncat”, which is a zylaphone type Cambodian traditional instrument . We support Sokya with room, board and a small stipend as a musician accompanying our dance students and by doing odd jobs at the school as needed.
10. Dana (female) age 19 is a student at the Human Resources University in Phnom Penh where she studies English Literature. Her current course of studies is a means to a bigger dream, which is to enter medical student. Her dream , since early childhood is to become a doctor and English is but the first step. We support Dana at the Dance School where she works at Guest Relations, greeting foreign tourists and explaining the school’s program . We also support Dana with room, board and a small stipend. Dana’s parents are peasant farmers, her mother has a 3rd grade education, her father no formal education. Among her accomplishments in high school was her work as a translator for a group fo American dentists who visit annually to provide free dental care for local children. Dana is one of the most gifted and talented students, who has consistently distinguished herself in a high school of 2500 students, despite coming from a family of the most modest means, she has managed to excel as a student, help others and continue in her singular goal to qualify to enter medical school.
11. Saorith ( female) age 20 studies at the Royal University of Agriculture where she is pursuing a degree in Agricultural Science. Now in year 1, she will need 3 more years to complete her studies. After graduation she wants to work with farmers to develop the community through more modern farming techniques. Saorith received an award for the best grades at Baphnom High School for the 2010/2011 school year, ranking as the # 1 student out of a 2,500 student body. Saorith’s mother is a farmer and her father a retired NGO worker. She is the youngest of 8 children. Like Dana, Saorith was single minded in her pursuit of education, each of them riding their bikes to school , covering a total distance of 40 KM ( 24 miles) each day to attend high school.
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