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In the presence of H E Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani, Vice Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer of Qatar Foundation (QF), dedicated faculty and staff, proud parents and around 142 excited graduates celebrated the Academic Bridge Program’s sixteenth Graduation Ceremony on Thursday at the Qatar National Convention Center (QNCC).
The Class of 2017 brings the total number of ABP graduates to over 2700. More than 80% of the graduating Class of 2017 are Qatari and the remaining 20% come from 17 different nationalities. The number of girls at the ABP this year is 75% and boys are 25%.
Around 66% of this year’s graduating class has been accepted to one of more of Hamad Bin Khalifa University’s (HBKU) partner universities. Some graduates will also enroll at Qatar University or one of the other colleges or universities in ?Qatar. Around 30% of the class have been or will be admitted to a university in the UK, Canada, or the US. Several others will also enroll at universities in the Gulf. Overall, more than 80% of the 2017 graduates will eventually gain admission to a university; this has been the pattern for the past several years.
After the procession of faculty and students into the theater at QNCC, the Qatari National anthem was played followed by a recitation of the Holy Quran by reciter Abdulbari Mohammad. Dr Bryan Lewallen, Director of the Academic Bridge Program welcomed Her Excellency and gave his comments on the Class of 2017. This was followed by a welcome speech on behalf of the Class of 2017 by Sara Al-Hemaidi the class salutatorian.
Khemara Chhorn, the ABP student with outstanding academic performance, who came to study at the ABP from a village in Cambodia started her “Reflections on the 2016-2017 School Year” by expressing how honoured she was to be addressing everyone “at this special occasion.”
“They say audiences like to be taken on a new journey, so now let me take you on mine,” Chhorn began and then narrated her remarkable story. “I grew up in a village, far away from the capital city of Cambodia, Phnom Penh, the only city that all universities are located in, so university is not the place where everyone can go, but it is my dream place. Since I was young, I have had a dream of working in the government system, so that I could have a voice in making decisions, to help other children and citizens in my country. Unfortunately, going to university was not in my parents’ plans, since university fees are so expensive compared to the amount of money that my parents earn per year as farmers.”
Chhorn’s hardwork and persistence earned her a full scholarship to study in the University of Cambodia in 2015. She continues “… it was a lucky moment for me when Reach Out To Asia travelled to Cambodia with a volunteer group. I had already volunteered to translate for my peers because not everyone could speak English. I started learning about Qatar and I began to appreciate its culture. As a result, ROTA decided to provide me with a full scholarship to study in an Education City university, if I could complete the university entrance requirements here.
After a year at the ABP, Chhorn succeeded in getting accepted to Georgetown University – School of Foreign Service in Qatar.
Chhorn concluded her reflections by thanking H E Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad Al Thani, for encouraging and providing her with a full sponsorship to study in Qatar, as well as her father, ABP faculty and staff, her high school principle and teacher in Cambodia and her first Qatari friend, Al Anoud, for helping her in this journey.
Mohammad Al-Otbey, who graduated from the ABP in 2008, and who now works in Occidental Qatar gave the keynote speech.
Dr Mark Newmark the Assistant Director of the Academic Affairs and Moza Al-Boainin the Assistant Director of the Student Services recognized students on special achievements, after which Dr. Bryan Lewallen gave out the graduation certificates. This year’s Valedictorian was Qatari student, Maryam Al-Badr, who was the first in the class academically.