News from Aziza's Place - November 2010

Dear friends,

This edition of Aziza's Courtyard heralds the many significant changes happening at Aziza's Place, most important of which is the realization of our long held goal to transition the management and operations of Aziza's Place into the hands of Khmer leadership. Until now, the vision for local leadership has always been a focus for the future, signifying an important turning point in the progress of Aziza's Place. After first opening our doors almost four years ago, we're proud to say that the Future is Now as we embark on this exciting phase in our existence.

Leading this charge will be Soy Socheat who has been with Aziza's Place for almost four years and will take on the overall responsibility as the Director of Programs. Starting on December 1, Socheat will be working alongside a new Director of Finance and Operations, Vong Bopha, who brings many years of experience working with larger international NGOs in Cambodia and who is eager to finally devote her time and efforts to working with children. We also welcome Cath Waugh to the full-time position of Communications Director. As many of you will recall, Cath, prior to her appointment, was the longest serving volunteer at Aziza's Place having spent well over a year volunteering as a teacher and with various AP projects, while earning a permanent place in the hearts of our resident children, staff, other volunteers and the larger AP community.

As we welcome new staff members and old staff members move into expanded roles, we also had to say our sad farewells to Interim Directors Alexandra Robbins and Daniel Haney. Ali and Dan always worked with the goal for local leadership in mind and were both excited to be handing over the torch of leadership to the Khmer staff. Ali and Dan also exerted tremendous effort in building and expanding the AP programs to a level of excellence which everyone will now strive to maintain. In this newsletter we send them off with an enormous Thank You for their commitment and dedication over the past eighteen months to the lives of all of us involved with Aziza's Place.

Other significant news for Aziza's Place includes the award of the Select Equity Group Foundation grant, awarded on behalf of Penny Barten. We are honored to accept the grant, which will provide considerable support for the programs and activites for the children of Aziza's Place. Read on for more details.

With Gratitude,
The AP team

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This month we give a special thanks to:

Select Equity Group Foundation • Kevin Ferguson • Mark and Lisa Burgess

Pauline Dennehy • Anne Perfall

Aziza’s Place awarded $16,000 from the Select Equity Group Foundation, on behalf of Penny Barten

The Aziza Foundation is honored to be the recipient of a $16,000 grant from the Select Equity Group Foundation, awarded on behalf of Penny Barten and specifically designated for Aziza's Place. According to Penny, she "couldn't stop thinking about Aziza's Place" after having visited in late 2007 and wanted to find some way to support our efforts.

Employees of Select Equity Group are involved in Select Equity Group’s grant-making process by researching and pitching an organization of their choice during an annual Grant Dinner organized in NYC. Depending on the success of the employee's pitch, funds are then allocated for their chosen organization. We are very grateful to Penny Barten for her success in raising $16,000 for Aziza’s Place, as she presented AP as being unique from other organizations, stemming from our focus on individual growth for each of our resident children along with a nuturing environment and programs that integrate the development of their community as a learning tool. This atmosphere and philosophy allows our children to constantly interact and communicate with the world around them as a means for building their knowledge base and as a basis for giving back to their communities.

We are very thankful to the Select Equity Group's generous contribution and for having the vision to give back in areas where funds are most needed. We look forward to working together in partnership with Select Equity Foundation in the future. Their generous grant will make a significant difference in the lives of the children at Aziza's Place as we put it towards our programs and services providing for now and for the future.

AP stepping into the vision of Khmer leadership

Change and transition is the theme of this month’s activities. We are excited to be implementing the long-held vision for Khmer leadership at Aziza’s Place which has been in the works since shortly after our opening in February 2007. The Khmer staff members have always been encouraged to progressively take on added responsibilities while also being provided with oportunities for training and continuing education. We are incredibly proud and happy to see the Khmer staff now feel confident taking owndership and the lead in directing the management, operations and vision for the future. We see a bright future as Soy Socheat steps into the role of Director of Programs, overseeing the running of Aziza’s Place with a particular focus on programs and activities, and in monitoring the childrens’ progress. Socheat has been with Aziza’s Place since we were established and has a firm grasp on the needs and aspirations of each individual child. He is excited to be taking on new responsibilities in his leadership role for Aziza’s Place.

We are also delighted to be introducing a new Khmer staff member, Vong Bopha, who will fill the role of Director of Finance and Operations. Vong Bopha will join the AP team on December 1st and will be working closely with Socheat while taking primary responsibility for financial reporting, budgets and day-to-day cash management. Once comfortable with her new work environment and mastering all the financial administration duties, Bopha will gradually move into the role of managing the daily operations and AP staff. Socheat and Bopha will work together in strategic planning, developing goals and regularly evaluating program effectiveness.

We also welcome Cath Waugh to the permanent staff of Aziza’s Place. Cath is originally from New Zealand but has made her home here in Cambodia, volunteering at Aziza’s Place for the past 17months. As of October Cath morphed into the role of Communications Director and is excited to be able to dedicate herself to a full-time role at AP. Her role as Communications Director will consist of donor communication; e-media updates (including the monthly Aziza's Courtyard Newsletter); and scheduling and coordination of volunteers and visitors. She is passionate about the aspirations and energy of the AP children and is excited by the prospect of communicating all the latest happenings to our wider community of supporters.

Ali and Dan leave a legacy of excellence

Ali and Dan say farewell to their friends at AP.

In this edition of Courtyard we say farewell to Interim Directors Alexandra Robbins and Dan Haney.  Ali and Dan both initially came to Aziza’s Place as volunteers in late 2007 but kept getting drawn back to the energy and colorful character of the place and couldn’t keep away, ultimately returning to share the director role from the beginning of 2009.  Ali and Dan's hard work and dedication to Aziza's Place has paved the way for the current changes into Khmer leadership.  They worked with love and compassion for everyone at Aziza’s Place and will be missed by us all – the children, the staff, the volunteers and also the wider community of donors and AP networks.  Ali and Dan have left a strong legacy of excellence in AP programs and a striving to reach the best for the AP children and families.  We wish them all the best in their next endeavours as they head home to the US.  Thankyou Ali and Dan for your dedication and inspirational work at AP – we hope to see you soon!

Education Program Revamp

This month we are excited to roll out a number of changes to the AP education program. Intern Darley Tom has been brainstorming with Director of Programs Soy Socheat and together they have come up with a number of improvements and fine tuning of our curriculum. Changes have been made with the aim of creating more structure and greater consistency in our classes. We will also implement evaluation and monitoring methods, for regular feedback from students and teachers to assess the progress of our Khmer, Maths, English and Computer classes.

Our English program is being enhanced in a number of ways. Students are now divided into four different levels which makes it easier for each individual student to be given the attention they need. The schedule has also been changed to enable one volunteer to teach three of these levels, while staff member Yi Makara teaches the beginner class. While our volunteers all provide unique input and inspiration to the children’s lives at Aziza’s Place, it has become apparent that the constant change of teachers can be disruptive for learning. In creating a schedule that allows one volunteer to teach three levels of English for at least 3-6months at a time, we reduce our dependency on volunteers while being able to maximize their teaching role. New volunteer Hayley Carter has been doing a great job in getting this new approach underway.

We have been able to purchase text books for each of the children which will contribute significantly in creating a consistent English curriculum that can be used as a basis for teachers as they develop their lesson plans. A quality English program will hold the AP students in great stead as they build their skill sets to be well equipped for future opportunities.

We are also excited to bring in a new Khmer computer teacher take to the classroom and develop a more structured program for the children in their computer studies. We have hardware resources for the children to become proficient in the use of computers and we are excited to be able to maximize this with guided instruction from a qualified teacher. The children will use their XO laptops and shared desktop computers to create projects that integrate various computer programs, developing another essential skill in today’s technology-filled society.

Bonn Om Dteuk - Cambodia's Annual Water Festival

Chopping coconuts to prepare for water festival treats.

Bonn Om Dteuk is a significant three-day festival in Cambodia, celebrating the end of the rainy season and the reversal of the river flow of the Tonle Sap River. On Saturday the resident children of Aziza’s Place celebrated with a feast of ‘ambok’ – a traditional rice dish mixed with coconut and banana. German visitors Niels Neudecker, Viola Decker and their three friends were entertained by the children’s frantic activities as everyone participated in balloon racing, blindfold games and many other Khmer games and activities. On Sunday and Monday evenings we joined in the celebrations in Phnom Penh city, checking out the fireworks, concerts and enjoying some tasty snacks with a picnic in the park.

We were then deeply saddened to hear that this year’s festivities turned to tragedy with people being crushed in crowds on the last day and our hearts reached out to those families who were affected. We are all thankful that the AP children and staff were all kept safe over the weekend.

Volunteers and Visitors - Comings and Goings

An AP volunteer catchup - (from left to right) Darley,

Marcela, Emma, Hayley and Cath.

Emma Horsfall:

This weekend we said our farewells to Emma who headed home to the UK after six months of living in Cambodia. She brought fun and laughter to our beginner English classes as she taught the youngest students of AP during her lunch breaks, while also working at another NGO in Phnom Penh. The children enjoyed learning new English words and phrases with creative lessons that always included singing and creative artwork. Emma will be going back to find work in her field of high school teaching. Thankyou Emma for always bringing in your smiles to Aziza’s Place – we wish you all the best!

 

Hayley Carter:

Welcome to Hayley who arrived in Phnom Penh at the beginning of November. Hayley is the first volunteer to take on the role as English teacher for three classes and is doing a great job at coordinating the different levels. She will provide valuable feedback as to the feasibility of the new approach to our English program. Hayley is from the UK and has adapted quickly to life in Phnom Penh with her easygoing personality. She has already ventured into the city traffic riding a bicycle, has joined a netball sports team and has taken to meditating with monks. Hayley has a background in Human Resources and will work with the staff and children at Aziza’s Place during the next three months to enhance communication and team-building strategies as we all fit into new roles with the transition into new management.

 

Marcela Grenados:

Marcela is in Cambodia for two weeks of intense mathematics teaching. She arrived from New York and immediately joined us in a fieldtrip to see the water festival activities. With this introduction to Phnom Penh and to the kids at Aziza’s Place she jumped right into teaching the next day. Marcela has incredible energy and enthusiasm for mathematics which is quickly spreading to the children! She has decided to spend her vacation time teaching tricky maths calculations and solving complex maths problems at AP, for which our older students are particularly grateful. Our maths teachers are also enjoying working with Marcela as they learn new ways to explain challenging problems. We are all enjoying Marcela’s passion for learning and will all look at mathematics in a new light after her time here. 
 

This month we also welcomed many visitors to Aziza’s Place. Visitor Kevin Ferguson was inspired by the children’s film productions and generously provided funds for the purchase of an upgraded television to enable the children to view their films clearly. Alex Dahlstrom and her mom heard of AP through connections with Ali and came to see the latest activities of the children. Fiona Poulsen and Ken Wilson from New Zealand joined us in taking the children out to see the water festival activities. They also generously gave some books and games for the children to enjoy. We thank you all for your support and for bringing your energies to the world of Aziza’s Place.

How to Help Aziza's Place - Support • Volunteer • Connect

Are you interested in supporting the children and programs of Aziza's Place? We invite you to become a part of our growing global community by donating, volunteering, or simply connecting us to your network of friends and family.

Click here to make a donation via PayPal. For donations over $400, please click here for wire transfer information. U.S. donors receive a tax credit receipt for your contribution. UK donors may elect the Gift Aid option so the tax-gross up is received by the charity. If you are a perspective volunteer, please take a look at our volunteer needs on idealist.org, or simply contact us.

Thank you for supporting the children and families of Aziza's Place.