CURRENTLY THESE ARE OUR GREATEST NEEDS 

UNIVERSITY SCHOLARSHIPS

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Due to our finely-tuned programs in the earlier grades, we are approaching the crucial tipping point of having as many students in secondary and tertiary education as in primary, with more students staying the course through school and getting to the Grade 12 national exam. With those G12 graduates in turn breaking into higher levels of academic achievement, we need to grow our high school, university and vocational training scholarships program accordingly.

Ensuring that students from impoverished families achieve their full potential and take advantage of the same opportunities as the elite is always our goal. Developed to offer the best chance of success at the critical junctures of a student’s learning journey, our scholarship programs enables them to go on to further education, better job prospects, and contribute to a more equitable future for their communities and their country.

Donating to our scholarship fund today can help students’ dream futures come true tomorrow!

  • Target $15,000

CREATING OUR DREAM TEAM!

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We have 20 teachers in the field across our projects, overseeing the extra curricular subjects of English, science, computers and more. Overseeing them is our core team of field directors and admin staff who maintain the framework and breadth of operations.

Many of these amazing individuals are either former students, or came in at the early days of our organization and have evolved and grown along with us, making huge contributions to our development along the way.

We believe in giving opportunities where we see enthusiasm and a thirst for growth, and often train members into their entry teaching positions, as well as giving all team members regular access to skills training so that we in turn are serving our students to the absolute best of abilities. These include internal trainings, peer coaching tours and teacher exchanges, as well as external courses and extra English classes.

We have seen how quickly teachers in the field and our HQ staff can learn and apply new concepts and skills. Scaling up these offerings for the 30 staff who benefit from it will have a direct and immediate impact on our students, so we’d like to increase the current budget to $4500 this year.

  • Target $4,500 66% 66%

KEEPING YOUNG READERS ROCKING!

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Encouraging a love of books is a big program focus – for students of course, and their families too – in the push to improve literacy rates and the value of education in the wider community.

Reading is among the first stepping stones of learning, and an early positive interaction with books paves the way for a successful journey through school. When kids read for pleasure as much as for study, we are confident they will go far.

In 2024 we opened our newest library at Chey Learning Center – bringing our total to 8 locations. The scale of our library program literally requires shelves-loads of books, which we refresh yearly to keep them stocked with new and engaging material. Our librarians also run regular reading events, inviting parents and families to join so that they can not only support their child’s reading habit but also begin to create their own – for some enjoying the many benefits that books bring for the first time. This parental engagement with their child’s study is one of the most important encouragements a student can receive.

Keeping our libraries stocked with engaging titles for hungry bookworms costs $2,000 per year. In 2024 your support enabled us to do just that! Will you help us stock up again for the year ahead?

BUILDING STEM STUDENTS FOR CAMBODIA’S FUTURE!

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Our science curriculum bolsters the lessons that students receive at public school, which are taught purely via a very limited textbook. Providing the practical experiments and hands-on activities that are missing supports students to understand the subject material more deeply, while bringing in fun and creativity at the same time.

Anything we can do to put STEM subjects in front of our students at an early age pays high dividends, as we work towards encouraging more students to choose the science track in Grade 12 and enter the STEM workforce. We are aligned with Cambodia’s own development goals in recognizing that the country’s future and an individual’s best career options lie in STEM fields. Our focus on all things STEM begins early on in the lower grades, and Science Labs are a growing part of that movement. 

In 2024, your donations allowed us to DOUBLE the reach of these lessons to students in Preah Vihear with the opening of a second lab – inspiring more and more students to find their inner geeks!

For the 2025 school year ahead, we need to replenish materials for both labs. The list of resources that make these lessons so much fun ranges from the expected – owl pellets, tweezers, and magnifying glasses – to the downright mind-boggling – shaving cream, marshmallows, Q-tips, and Styrofoam balls!

And we want to offer field trips for both labs to the Aquarium and Wildlife Center in Siem Reap, so that students can get out and be even more inspired to study the world around them.

$2,000 will allow us to do all of this. Can we count on you again to inspire even more budding scientists towards STEM futures?

  • Target $2,000
BOOSTING BRAINS

In addition to the filling and nutritious daily breakfasts that rural students at remote primary schools Koh Ker and Romchek receive, we also try to serve monthly all-you-can-eat lunches, where many families still live with food insecurity and hand-to-mouth existence.

These lunches provide an extra boost to students, who are encouraged to take home servings for their families as well.

Pre-Covid, these were facilitated by loads of visitors to Cambodia coming to take part; post-Covid, we are still not back to receiving enough regular visitors to fully reinstate this.

But don’t worry, you can help from home!

  • Target $7,000

ENSURING GIRLS STAY IN SCHOOL – EVERY DAY OF THE MONTH

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Give the gift of dignity this holiday season, with these menstrual hygiene kits that ensure girls never need to miss a day of school – just because they have their periods.

For youngsters on the cusp of puberty, understanding how the body works is crucial – especially when this information is lacking at their government schools and often in their homes too. That’s why our workshop program includes Growth & Change sessions on physical & emotional health, so that youngsters are fully prepared for the changes that they are about to experience. In these sessions, we distribute menstrual hygiene kits for middle school girls, which contain washable, reusable pads, making them much more economically- and environmentally-friendly than disposable alternatives. The kits also contain a period tracker so that girls can understand their cycles.

You can say HECK YEAH to keeping girls in school – every day of the month – by clicking through to the campaign!

Alternatively if you’re planning a trip to Siem Reap and are checking in at LAX, let us know if you’ve got enough luggage allowance to bring packs over from our supplier 🙂

  • Target $2,000

OUR OTHER PROGRAMS

 

PLF’s comprehensive strategy involves many more programs – developed and honed over time – that work together to ensure disadvantaged students can access school.

You can check these out on our Programs page, and designate your gift during the donation process to let us know where you would like it applied. 

 

Contributing to ANY of our intitatives keeps students in class and on the road to successs!

Looking for another way to join in? Head over to our Get Involved page and see if there is something just right for you!