School Scholarships: Education is the key to a better life no matter where you live or what your circumstances may be.  In Vietnam, education is not free like it is in many parts of the world.  Many or most of the children in the outskirts of Da Nang are economically poor - just like their families.  School is provided by the government or by private groups.  No matter who the sponsor is, each child is expected to pay his or her tuition.  Obviously, with as many poor people to contend with, most schools have a large part of the student body receiving some form of assistance. Children of Vietnam provides scholarships ($5.00 US per month) for poor children to attend school so they will not be deprived of this very important element in their life.

Bicycle Scholarships:  In addition to school scholarships we found that a number of children had to walk 3 or 4 miles each way to get TO school.  You have to remember that the average temperature during the school year can range between 85-105 degrees.  In order to get the children to and from school in a reasonable time frame and ready to learn when they got there, we instituted a program of giving "bicycle scholarships" to children from outlying areas.  The bicycles are $39 each.  

In the picture to the left you can see our Program Directors Ms. Huong and Ms. Quy with the recipient of a bicycle.  

Vocational Scholarships:  As the children get older, most of them will have to earn a living at a trade.  Children of Vietnam awards vocational scholarships to attend a vocational school in Da Nang where the boys and girls can study tailoring, carpentry, becoming a seamstress, etc.  In addition, we try to encourage girls especially to take this training in order to keep them off of the streets and provide an alternative way to gain income.