| Q1: | What is the purpose of the SOAR Foundation? |
| A1: | The SOAR Foundation is a nonprofit, nonreligious, and nonpolitical organization created in 1995 in California, U.S.A. It is dedicated to provide scholarships to the impoverished children who live in remote regions of China and want to continue their basic education. |
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| Q2: | Who are the SOAR Scholarship targeted recipients? |
| A2: | They are the academically excellent students who lack the funding to continue their high school or similar level vocational school education. They are mostly between the ages of 13-18, and live in remote regions of China or Taiwan. |
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| Q3: | How is the SOAR Scholarship distributed? |
| A3: | Some local teachers in China helped distribute the SOAR scholarship application forms to needy students in the target regions. The completed applications are sent to the SOAR Foundation Evaluation Committee located in the U.S. Selections are made after three levels of review. Using the local Postal Office Deposit Service, the SOAR office in Beijing mails the money directly to the scholarship recipients.
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| Q4: | How is the SOAR Scholarship fund used by the students? |
| A4: | The annual scholarship fund is used for tuitions and book purchase. The amount is US$100 for junior high students, and US$300 for senior high students. |
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| Q5: | How does SOAR Foundation ascertain that the scholarship fund is actually used by the target students? |
| A5: | 1). The scholarship recipient will mail the receipt back to SOAR Foundation after getting the funding. Receipts are kept in the SOAR Foundation office. Based on the receipts, the office will then notify the donors who had specified that their donations be sent to the individual students from the list on the web.
2). The mentors can get a real picture of the student's situation through direct correspondence.
3). The SOAR Foundation members get a first hand knowledge of how the funds are used by periodic onsite visits using their own funding
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| Q6: | Who are the overseas mentors? |
| A6: | SOAR Foundation tries to find a mentor for scholarship recipients. The mentors are SOAR Foundation members and supporters. Through personal correspondence, mentors provide moral support and get to understand how the scholarship funds are used. Mentors present feedback to the board at the end of the year. |
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| Q7: | What does the SOAR Foundation expenditure come from? |
| A7: | SOAR Foundation expenditure comes from general donations and membership dues. Donations are designated exclusively for scholarship use. Membership due is US$25.00 per year, and US$500.00 for lifetime membership. All SOAR Foundation workers are non-salaried volunteers. |
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| Q8: | Are donations to SOAR Foundation tax deductible? |
| A8: | Yes. The tax ID number is 94-3255490. |
