When ISF was founded in 2006, the goal was to provide disadvantaged Cambodian children and their families with a pathway out of poverty, helping them succeed in life. At the time it was just a dream, but now it has become a reality.

25 students at ISF Chbar Ampov and 26 at ISF Stung Meanchey graduated from our Catch-up programme at the end of October and entered government-funded state schools on 1^st November. This brings our total number of students supported at state school level to 343.

The graduation ceremony was very inspiring and emotional. All the children were extremely excited and their parents were so proud of their children’s achievements they couldn’t stop their tears from falling. Sokha* gave a short speech at the ceremony: “I am very happy to have been a member of ISF’s family for over three years. Today is the happiest day of my life because my mother keeps smiling and she is very proud of me. She always encourages me to study and to never give up on my dreams. I am so grateful to all the teachers at ISF for organising this special event and also for teaching me so much over these three years. I promise I will study hard at state school.”

Sopheap, one of our students’ mothers added: “My dream is for my daughter to have a good life and a bright future. I don’t want to see her struggling to put food on the table. Today, when I saw her receiving her graduation certificate and her teachers told me what a good student she is, I realised that my dream is becoming tangible. Thank you ISF for giving my daughter the chance to study and for everything you have done for our family.”

This month we also welcomed 90 new catch-up students. These students come from the poorest areas of Phnom Penh and many have never been to school before. Every year, we receive far more applications from disadvantaged families than we can accommodate. This is why we do a careful selection to make sure the places go to those in most need. This year we received 285 applications at ISF Chbar Ampov and 295 applications at ISF Stung Meanchey. We interviewed all the families and visited their homes to make a full assessment based on our selection criteria. We selected 50 students in Stung Meanchey and 40 students in Chbar Ampov who are living in extreme poverty and are uneducated. On Friday, 27th October we invited all the new catch-up students and their parents to come to our school to take their placement tests and get more information about ISF. The new students’ first day at school was 1^st November. It was priceless to see the excitement and happiness on their faces!

ISF catch-up and state school students are now embarking on things that seemed impossible just a few years ago. We couldn’t be happier and prouder of each and every achievement!