About SOAR
The SOAR Foundation is a nonprofit and nonpolitical organization created in 1995 in California, U.S. A. It is dedicated to provide educational opportunities to those impoverished yet deserving children in rural areas across China to acquire a basic education through scholarship awards. Up to 2005, it has granted 3500 plus students with scholarships. Since the first donation by the founder, Ms. Siu Fong Chang, there have been more than 3000 organizations and individuals supported the SOAR scholarship program.
Why We Care
The following group of data deserves concern from every one who truly cares about our motherland.
- In China, over 80% of its population reside in rural areas; more than 60% of this populace possess no higher than an elementary or grade school level of education;
- According to statistics published by UNESCO, there are 890 million people around the world who are illiterate. Among them there are 229 million Chinese. For every 10 Chinese, there is one who is near-illiterate or illiterate; conversely, for every 4 Americans, there is one who has a college degree;
- In China, among 220 million school students, one third can finish no higher than elementary school; one third can finish no higher than junior high school; yet less than one third finish senior high school. The average length of education is less than 5 years; conversely, Japan had universalized 6-year elementary school education by 1907;
- In China, the number of school dropouts is still rising. According to the statistics published by the State Bureau of Statisticals, the total number of school dropouts in 1988 reached 7.6 milllion nation wide, an increase of 34.5% from 1987, and an increase of 38% from 1986. Among 4 million school dropouts each year, approximately one million are forced to drop out due to poverty;
- In 1990, the per person average expense on education was CNY52 in China, an equivalence of US$10, ranked near the bottom among nations around the world. In industralized countries, however, the per person average expense on education has surpassed US$1000;
- A case at point: In Haiyuan County, Ningxia, 1989, the elementary school student dropout rate was over 10%; over 19.9% of school-age children were unenrolled; the total school dropouts reached 14470; in other words, one in every 3 students dropped out. The county population was around 300000.
| Address: | 32980 Alvarado Niles Rd, Suite 854 |
| Union City, CA 94587 | |
| Tel: | (510) 675-0680 |
| Fax: | (510) 675-0160 |
| Email: | office@soaronline.org |
| Web: | http://www.soaronline.org |