CUSP is proud to celebrate a major milestone for the students it serves. All fourteen CUSP seniors passed Cambodia’s national exam for 12th graders this year—a 100% pass rate, compared with a national average of 84%. For youth from poor, rural families—those CUSP was created to serve—this outcome is especially meaningful. It shows not only the students’ hard work, but also the power of access: when rural youth are given the chance to attend and persist in high school, they can compete and excel at the highest level.
The standout of this year’s cohort is Sok Kanha pictured below, who earned an A, the first time a CUSP student has achieved the top grade. Her score places her in the top 2% of students nationwide. Kanha, who dreams of becoming a doctor, earned A’s in five of the seven subjects on the exam—including math, biology and physics—and earned a B in chemistry. Her strong performance is an important step toward realizing her ambition of entering the medical field.
Two additional CUSP students earned B grades, a distinction achieved by only 7% of students nationwide. The remaining students also passed solidly, contributing to a 100% pass rate in a year when exam rigor remained high.
CUSP exists to make secondary education possible for students who otherwise would not be able to attend high school because of poverty, distance and family obligations. This year’s results reaffirm a simple truth at the center of CUSP’s mission: talent is everywhere; opportunity is not. When opportunity is extended to rural youth, they succeed.
CUSP congratulates Kanha and all of this year’s graduates! Their achievements open doors not only for themselves, but also for the younger students and siblings who are watching them, and now they have new reasons to believe that their own futures can be different.