Welcome to CUSP’s annual newsletter. Here are highlights and progress made during 2023.
2023 by the numbers
- 43 students were supported in our High School dorms in Kampong Thom and attended high school.
- 34 students received post high school scholarships to colleges and vocational schools.
National Exam
We’re extremely proud of this year’s high school senior class. In November, 14 students took the national exam for graduating 12th graders. 13 students passed the exam which is a 93% pass rate. The national average is 73%. Two students received a score that placed them in the top 6% nationally!
Student Profiles
In 2023 we started sharing student profiles on the cusp.org web site. Check out Pean’s if you haven’t already. Many students have inspiring stories to tell, and we look forward to bringing those stories to you in 2024.
CUSP board news
We are very happy to welcome Kirsty Haining to the board as the new CUSP accountant. She has taken over accounting from John Claus who was the CUSP accountant for over 12 years. We thank John for his faithful and exceptional service to CUSP!
Zoom English Classes
The number of CUSP English classes via Zoom, and student enrollment grew in 2023! These are Zoom teaching sessions hosted by our English teachers: Sophorn, Baon, and Pean. Each teacher hosts at least 3 hours of sessions per week.
- Sophorn teaches 10th grade dorm students. 12 students attend these lessons.
- Baon teaches the 11th and 12th grade dorm students. 42 students attend these lessons.
- Pean has 5 sessions a week. 10 Kavet students in Banlung and Siempang, and some dorm students attend these lessons.
Summary
CUSP is financially healthy, has no debt, and runs a lean operation with 94% of donations going to programs. There are also more students in need of sponsorship than CUSP currently has funds to provide. One way you can help is to spread the word amongst friends and family, that students in Cambodia need financial help to escape poverty through education. Donations of any amount make a big impact. A high school student sponsorship costs 45$/month ($540 a year), and University students are $80/month ($960 year).
2024 looks very hopeful as we strive to help young Cambodians escape poverty and thrive! Thank you for your continued support!