Sovanita’s Story: How Phare Kindergarten Cultivated an Early Love of the Arts
Sinat, a mother from an impoverished situation, is delighted to witness her 5-year-old daughter Sovanita thrive in the supportive environment at Phare Kindergarten. Sovanita’s passion for art reflects her dreams, making her a favorite among teachers. Phare Ponleu...
Dancing Toward a Fairer Future: A New Path for Young Female Dancers at Phare Ponleu Selpak
This year, Phare Ponleu Selpak has taken a meaningful step toward creating new opportunities for young female dancers. In February, thanks to funding from the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF) we launched a new project aimed at improving the learning...
Meet CHHAI Bunsorng, Student Services Supervisor on the Phare Social Support Team
The Social Support program of Phare Ponleu Selpak is dedicated to improving the living standard of Cambodian children and their families in the community while engaging them in safeguarding children’s rights and well-being. This is made possible by the Social...
Meet the Volunteers of Phare Ponleu Selpak: Olivia AUDO, Communications & Marketing Intern
At Phare Ponleu Selpak, we are fortunate to work with volunteers and interns from across Cambodia and around the world. It’s one of the best parts of being on our team – you get to form friendships and meet people from everywhere! This week we’re proud to interview...
Phare’s Collective Child Sponsorship Program: Everything You Need to Know
We believe that all children – regardless of their background – deserve to have access to education and to the healing powers of the arts. By sponsoring a child at Phare Ponleu Selpak, you help us provide art programs and teach professional skills that lead to lasting...
Phare Social Support Thanks Chef SOM Savoeurn for 17 Years of Service in the Free Lunch Program
Every student who is part of the free lunch program at Phare Ponleu Selpak knows SOM Savoeurn. For 17 years, she’s been the chef in the Phare kitchen helping the social support team by cooking nutritious meals for students in need or who live too far away. This...
Highlights of Educational Achievements at Phare Ponleu Selpak in 2023
Over 120 parents and families from around Battambang gathered under the big top at Phare Ponleu Selpak on 6 November 2023 to witness a special event organized by the Phare Education Department: The Highlights of Educational Achievements in 2023. This gathering of...
How Phare Kindergarten Celebrated Pchum Ben Festival in Battambang
Pchum Ben Festival is a fifteen-day Khmer festival that honors the memory and legacy of the seven generations of ancestors for many people in Cambodia. About 60 members of the Phare Ponleu Selpak community, mostly including Phare Kindergarten, practiced and...
Join Us for the Sangker River Run: A 30 km Fundraiser Run (or Cycle!) for Phare Ponleu Selpak
On your marks, get set…it’s time to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Phare Ponleu Selpak! That’s right, 2024 is the year that Phare Ponleu Selpak turns 30, and we’re celebrating all year long with a series of special events, fundraisers, art festivals, and more....
Teacher Interview: How Child Protection Works at Phare Kindergarten
The Child Protection policy was updated and improved in 2019 at Phare Ponleu Selpak. In the kindergarten, the program creates a climate of security and trust between students and teachers at school, and between children and parents at home. SOK Mochchara has been an...
How Nutrition Plays a Vital Role in Child Protection at Phare Ponleu Selpak
Nutrition is vital to the health and welfare of every child. After all, a child’s growth is regulated by the food they eat, and meals must include vitamins and nutrients in sufficient quantities to ensure long-term wellness. That’s why nutrition is such an important...
How the Mobile Library Brings Books, Arts, and Joy to Battambang Communities
Earlier this year, Phare Ponleu Selpak re-launched a mobile library program for the children in the surrounding community. The mobile library goes out into the surrounding community every Thursday and Friday to give everyone, but especially youngsters, a chance to...
How Does My Circus Show Ticket Support Phare Ponleu Selpak?
When you purchase a ticket to the Phare Battambang Circus, did you know you’re supporting an entire community? It’s true. The funds from your ticket impact a wide variety of people and programs throughout Battambang Cambodia. But First… Before we dive into specifics,...
A Glimpse into the Life Skills Workshops at Phare Ponleu Selpak
You might know about Phare Ponleu Selpak for our circus shows in Battambang or for the arts education we offer to children, youth, and young adults in the community, but did you know we also offer our students a wide range of social support programs? One of those...
Social Support Workshop: Be Like Bamboo, Bend But Don’t Break
As societies evolve, the difficulties that young people face – and the social support they need – change accordingly. For example, today’s youth in Cambodia have to deal with a number of challenges, including: Scholastic and peer pressure Family breakdowns or...
Phare Ponleu Selpak Creates a Mobile Community Library
Out of the Tini Tinou International Circus Festival spotlight, which took everyone’s attention during the months of May and June, our education team was busy launching the community mobile library. Books have always played a significant role at Phare, engaging many...
LOVE DOES NOT HURT: Phare is advocating for children rights and wellbeing
Phare Ponleu Selpak is still taking an active role in the “Love Does Not Hurt Campaign”: a three-year advocacy campaign launched in 2020 to push for an end to Humiliating/Corporal Punishment and to promote Positive Discipline in the Southeast Asian Region....
Phare into the Future: Join our Virtual Gala & Guinness World Record Circus Show
Do you want to be a Guinness World Record Breaker? And help Phare survive the pandemic? Then please join us on March 6 & 7 for our thrilling virtual gala and record-breaking Longest Circus Peformance Ever! We want you to join us for ONE EXCITING HOUR, where...
How we support the communities we serve in times of COVID-19
In these troubled times, our first thought has been for the many impoverished communities in Battambang Province who are counting on Phare’s support. Social support has always been at the core of our mission. To understand the economic situation and immediate needs of...
Statements from the Young Artists of Phare
Meet our budding artists, who are studying both at the Phare Public School and our Performing Arts School! Thanks to our sponsorship program, they can enjoy free education and lots of creative activities on our campus. Statements from Sovann, 13 years old, circus...
Looking back to 15 years of child support in Phare with Sokia
Sokia, our physiotherapist at Phare, joined Phare Ponleu Selpak in 2004 and has been with us since the early days of our child support initiatives. Here’s what he has to say about the evolution of child support at Phare. “When I started at Phare, there were...
Interviews with Child Club Members, Ambassadors of Children’s Rights
Phare Ponleu Selpak is dedicated to upholding the rights of all children. To this end, Child Club was created in February 2015, by 30 students from 16 different villages in the communes of Ochar, Chamcar Samrong and Toul Taek. It comes from the idea that children...
Meet the European Union Aid Volunteers of Phare Ponleu Selpak
November marks the end of the European Union Aid Volunteers (EUAV) deployment after they have joined Phare team this past year. The volunteers arrived in November, January or June for a duration of six months, nine months, or one year. The 10 volunteers have offered...
Meet Monisovanya Ry, Artist and Strategic Product Designer
Monisovanya Ry studied as an artist in our Visual and Applied Arts School, where she attended the graphic design vocational training. With no previous arts literacy, her first motives to integrate into our program were very pragmatic: it was free and close from home....
Keeping Our Children Safe – Further Development of Phare’s Child Protection Policy
Keeping children safe is everyone’s responsibility. To ensure that we stay on top of child protection, all Phare Ponleu Selpak staff received a one-day training in August to get a better understanding of our child protection policy. They became more familiar with its...
Phare’s Commitment to Non-Stop Child Protection and Support
Would you like to know what our Social Support department does on a monthly basis? Let us show you their activities of the last quarter in a few numbers. Child Protection Program: We have raised awareness through workshops on children’s rights, child protection, and...