Spreading love: Back-to-school joy

On the morning of September 12, 2023, representatives from the Fundamental Sciences Faculty, including Deputy Head of Faculty, MSc. Le Thu Hang, and 9 lecturers, launched a community program "Back-to-school joy" in Bu Dang district, Binh Phuoc province, along with the delegation from Idocean Company Limited, a collaborator in the program.

Community service is one of the meaningful activities that the Fundamental Sciences Faculty’s members in particular and Van Lang University in general have upheld for many years. Many valuable and heartfelt gifts have been distributed, extending love and care to people and places facing hardships. Maintaining this tradition, this year the Fundamental Sciences Faculty, along with many individuals from different departments of Van Lang University and the Idocean Company Limited, collaborated for the "Back-to-school joy" program, aimed to present meaningful gifts to the students of Kim Dong Elementary School in Duc Lieu commune and Quang Trung Middle School in Phu Son commune, located in Bu Dang district, Binh Phuoc province.

From as early as 3:30 am on September 12th, all members gathered at the main campus of Van Lang University to transport and arrange nearly 500 gifts onto vehicles. At 8:30 am the same day, the group arrived at their first destination - the school location in village 5, part of Kim Dong Elementary School. Welcoming the group were not only the school's administrators but also Mr. Tran Duy Hiep, the deputy chairman of the commune. 

Given the vastness of the area, Kim Dong Elementary School operates across 8 separate locations, each being 7-8 km away from one another.  Essentially, the school has sectioned off community houses to serve as classrooms for the students. The group distributed 111 gifts to the students, 10 chalkboards for the classrooms, many books and comics for the school library, and clothing for the teachers. The children were very well-behaved, lining up neatly to receive their gifts and politely thanking the lecturers.

Afterwards, the group continued their journey to Quang Trung Middle School in Phu Son commune. This local school possessed a tradition of fondness for learning. Despite facing many challenges, a relatively high percentage of students achieve awards at the district, provincial, and national levels annually. MSc. Le Thu Hang could not hide her joy and emotion as the students remembered her from over a year ago when she helped refurbish the library and donated many valuable books to the school. This time, when visiting the school, the delegation had very interesting and useful activities with the students. The topic sharing of "Benefits of reading" by MSc. Le Thu Hang and "Benefits and harms of social networks" from MSc. Nguyen Quoc Huy received attention and enthusiastic response from the children. The fact that students attentively listened, raised their hands to speak, and confidently expressed their opinion left good impressions on the lecturers. Afterwards, the group handed out 340 gifts to the students, 45 ao dai for the female teachers, and many books for the school library.

The group returned to VLU at 8:00 PM on the same day, concluding a meaningful and joyful journey. We hope that this meaningful activity will be maintained and receive the support from all faculty members to spread love widely!

News: MSc. Huynh Thi Phuong Thuy - Fundamental Sciences Faculty’s lecturer
Photos: MSc. Bui Ta Thanh