ESE Scholarship

[HcVcT]

Anh Lửa Việt suggested an idea that we could possibly set up a scholarship for someone who truly need it. This is at the beginning stage. We need your input... What do you think we should do? Where do you think we should start? How do you think we should proceed? How do you think we should set the criterias to selecting candidates? How should we govern any progress?

We welcome any ideas, concerns, questions, etc. ...

Please state as much as you can think of here. Then we will have a meeting to discuss the matters...

[gdpt-]

Hm, interesting concept. I think giving out a scholarship isn't a bad idea. I mean, even just $100 can make a big difference in a scholar's financial standing. I am all in favor of it, that is, if we can layout a constructive system that'll work.

Firstly, I believe we'll need a source of funding. Where do we get these financial resources and who'll provide them? Well, we can start off by looking for sponsors and asking for donations. Any will do. Even $10 dollars a person can eventually add up to hundreds. An outline of who we are, what we do, and our main goal is a good start to put up advertisements (hoping we'll get sponsorships).

Of course, we'll need a trustworthy treasurer and a secure money transaction method (such as Paypal).. but these trivial details can be worked out later.

Once our financial issues are settled, we can then start on our criteria. Who, What, When, Where, Why, How.

Who?
Who are the prospective candidates? Members of ESE, of course. More specifically, I think we should narrow it down to well known members (that is, those who are recognized as active members). By narrowing it down, we can give full advantage to those individuals who put their educational needs as a priority by going on ESE and supporting the class and instructors. To be more specific, should we put an age limitation? In my opinion, there shouldn't be an age restriction, since age is merely but a number and people of different ages need the same support for their financial needs. Additionally, since we have members of various geographical location, we can expand our accessibility to everyone and not just certain groups of people (such as only to those from Vietnam, US, etc.)

What?
What requirements are there to qualify as a candidate? Must be enrolled in an academic institution. With this, I don't know how we can verify their enrollment status but I think it's crucial that the candidates are college students. After all, a scholarship is financial support for the purpose of furthering one's EDUCATION.

When?
Of course, a time span will be needed. In brief, we can talk it over and when we have all the criterias needed, we can make it available and give them a time period of 3 months to submit their application, then 2-3 months to analyze the applicants and to narrow down the prospects... and finally, rewarding the prize.

Where?
Where will all this take place? After all, our community relies on the Internet as our primary source of communication, so, it would make sense to state that it'll take place via the Internet.

Why?
Why else? To lend a helping hand in furthering one's education, of course. If we can execute this, it will all be based on good morals. This can only be beneficial.

HOW?
Yes, HOW! This is the question I've been dreading upon.
How do you think we should proceed? Well, for starters, we can set up an application which will require the basic information to identify a candidate. This is an ESE Scholarship. Since our objective is to "share" our "english" "experiences" (turn it around and u'll get english sharing experience), we'll also require the candidates to write formal essays. We can bring forth questions that'll evoke their thinking. The essay should play a significant role in evaluating the candidates. To make it more fun, we can bring the scholarship onto Paltalk. Hehehe, that is, we can, then, hold an oral interview session in ESE. Of course, that'll require the candidates to buy a mic. (Those without a mic, either you buy a mic or consider yourself disqualified, hahahaha) Interview sessions should be private (so other candidates will not steal answers), so we should create a room to carry out those tasks. In the room, we'll need one standing interviewer, three listeners who'll critique the answers, and of course, the candidate. In addition, part of the scholarship process, we can require each candidate to hold a 30 minute class session so we can evaluate their characteristics as a person and how they portray themselves verbally.

Once everything is done with, the board members (yes, we'll need a board, hahahaha) will sit down together and evaluate all the candidates and we'll pick our lucky winner!

As a candidate, I think they should demonstrate character & attitude, knowledge & ability, and goals & needs.

Character is important. The candidate should be able to portray themselves as respectable individuals. They also need to show their knowledge of the English language. The candidate should not be judged exclusively on their ability to speak English but rather their understanding of the English language. The candidates should also show their determination for the scholarship. We need to be able to distinguish between candidates, and those who stand out most, will have full advantage. The significance of the scholarship on a candidate is also important. Why do the candidates need the scholarship? What hardships will they endure, if not given the scholarship?

This scholarship idea is not bad at all. I'm looking forward to it.

:spam:

[JK]

JK sẽ viết tiếng Việt cho chắc hehehe:

Việc đầu tiên nên làm: Nếu thấy đây là việc nên làm thì ESE nên họp trước để xem ý kiến mọi người ra sao. .. và chúng ta sẽ làm gì tiếp theo.

1. Họp staffs trước: Dù sao đi nửa thì đây cũng là lần đầu tiên, sẽ không có nhiều người ủng hộ (vì họ chưa tin tưởng lắm) nên tất cả chi phí đều từ staffs hết. (Lí zdo LL nói vậy là vì: sẽ không thực tế nếu mình chưa có đồng nào hết mà lại lo đi tìm người để cho. Rồi nếu tìm được người rồi mà vẩn chưa có đồng nào thì... tính sao?)

2. Sau khi chúng ta đã quyết định làm thì nên họp chung tất cả mọi người trong ese, open to public để mọi người tham gia và có ý kiến, để xem mọi người phản ứng làm sao....Rất có thể chúng ta sẽ tìm được thêm vài người ủng hộ và tham gia chịu đóng góp ít nhiều trong lúc này không chừng.

3. Sau khi đã thành công với 2 bước trên: thì tiếp theo là nên lập quĩ ( đây là bước khó nhất, nếu như nói giống gd là dùng paypal thì cần có 1 account riêng = 1 bank account riêng. Và ... còn nhiều vấn đề ở đây)

4. Kêu gọi mọi người ủng hộ, donate ... được bao nhiêu hay bấy nhiêu. Họp staffs lại để quyết định số tiền sẽ cho 1 người là bao nhiêu ( tùy theo fund của mình có được là bao nhiêu)


Việc thứ 2 nên làm: Tìm người nào xứng đáng nhất để được nhận cái scholarship của ese. Cái này khó mà dể.... dể mà khó. Tạm thời vẩn chưa nghĩ ra cách tốt nhất.

1. Những ai sẽ đủ điều kiện để có được scholarship này: LL nghĩ nên là tất cả mọi người ở VN và đang trong dộ tuổi đi học.... Hoàn cảnh gia đình thật sự đặt biệt khó khăn, ham học nhưng không có điều kiện. ( chúng ta cũng nên ưu tiên cho những người vùng quê nhiều hơn, vì ở đó cuộc sóng khó hơn)

2. Nhưng làm sao để tìm được những người này cũng là một vấn đề khi chúng ta sống o nước ngoài, không có điều kiện liệnlac với những trường học ở việt nam. ( Có lẽ nên nhờ những người ở VN liên lạc thử xem) Và những người thật sự khó khăn thì... làm gì có điều kiện để online.

Có 1 cách LL vừa nghĩ ra... là mình sẽ làm 1 cái banner, rồi xin những websites (tất cả những websites nào có thể) Xin họ cho mình để banner ở đó và hy vọng mọi người truyền miệng nhau mà biết thêm thông tin... và có thể sẽ đến tai... người thật sự cần.


Việc làm thứ 3: Sau khi có fund, sau khi tìm được người xứng đáng... làm sao trao scholarship cho họ? Cái này không khó, nhưng nó cũng rất là quan trọng nếu chúng ta muốn làm việc này lâu dài và được mọi người ủng hộ.

1. Không phải là khoe khoan, hay làm nổi... nhưng LL nghĩ chúng ta nên chụp hình: thứ nhất là lưu niệm, thứ 2 là như một bằng chứng cho việc làm của ese để mọi người khác thấy đáng tin... đáng đưộc ủng hộ... và sẽ dể dàng hơn cho việc xin quĩ ủng hộ sau này. Nếu được lên báo thì càng tốt... thông tin sẽ chuyển đi nhanh hơn. Báo chí thì có việc để Viết, chúng ta thì nhờ đó để mọi người biết mà đến ủng hộ, và những người thật sự khó khăn cũng sẽ biết đến chúng ta nhiều hơn.....

Đó là cách nghĩ và sa'p xếp việc làm của LL về chuyện này: Xin mọi người tự do cho ý kiến... :)

:drunk:

[snowdrop_14]

i heard that ESE is looking for a contributor for a good deed, please count me in. I think scholarship for the needy is a wonderful idea.

[hoaisnv]

Em cũng bắt chước JK viết tiếng Việt ạ.

Em rất hoan nghênh sáng kiến này. Thấy LV cũng nhiều lần đề cập đến việc này và em cũng đã trao đổi sơ qua. Em chỉ xin có một số ý kiến nhỏ nhỏ thế này:

- Đúng là việc "đầu tiên" là "tiền đâu". Trước hết, chắc chắn nguồn tiền chúng ta phải đi từ chính ví chúng ta rồi. Theo ý kiến cá nhân, em nghĩ là chúng ta có thể nào đó tin tưởng nhau mà cử ra một số đại diện ở VN để nhận khoản đóng góp này ko? Theo em được biết thì các banks ở VN bây giờ đang rất thèm tiền và việc mở 1 bank account bây giờ dễ hơn nhiều. Và với bank account đó sẽ cần 2 chữ ký để có thể rút tiền qua tài khoản. Cuối tháng, chúng ta có thể lấy được sao kê NH (Bank statement) để gửi cho mọi người và reconcile số dư cuối kỳ. Các donors từ nước ngoài có thể gửi tiền qua TK đồng USD đó. Khi việc làm được nhân rộng, mọi người sẽ tin tưởng chúng ta mà đóng góp hơn.

- Việc chọn đối tượng hưởng lợi, sẽ có nhiều mục đích mà từ đó chúng ta có nhiều tiêu chí. Nếu đối tượng nhắm tới học sinh của ESE thì chúng ta cần họ phải biết tiếng Anh và cần phải tham gia interview như cô GD nói. Nhưng theo em, những người có điều kiện lên PT thì sẽ ko có mấy người nghèo để cần sự giúp đỡ đâu ạ. Vì số tiền chúng ta có hạn, đối tượng hưởng lợi cần phải xem xét trên rất nhiều khía cạnh đúng ko ạ? Trong trường hợp chúng ta mở rộng đối tượng hưởng lợi thì em sẽ có thể refer nhà mình đến rất nhiều địa chỉ để chúng ta tiến hành các đánh giá. Và trên các trang báo của hàng ngày, chúng ta cũng có thể tìm rất nhiêu gương vượt khó. Và em hoàn toàn đồng ý với ý kiến rằng chúng ta nên giúp nhũng người vượt khó trong học tập hay ít ra là gây dựng được một cái nghề. Bởi chúng ta cần cho họ một cần câu cá thay vì con cá. Em đang muốn nói đến một sự phát triển bền vững mà báo chí VN đang tốn giấy mực để bàn luận.

Em cũng đồng ý với ý kiến của JK. "Án tại hồ sơ" mà. "Tiền bạc phân minh, ái tình sòng phẳng". Nên chúng ta nhất thiết phải có supporting documents cho việc nhận donation. Có thể chỉ là chụp ảnh thôi. Em nghĩ ở những ngày đầu, chúng ta có thể xây dựng 1 blog để send cho bạn bè, post những ảnh khi chúng ta trao sự giúp đỡ của chúng ta cho các đối tượng hưởng lợi.

Em chỉ xin có 3 ý kiến đó thôi. Sẽ không dễ dàng để thực hiện đúng ko ạ? Nhưng chúng ta có trái tim và khối óc mà. Em hi vọng chúng ta sẽ đạt được một điều gì đó...

Thầy LV còn idea này hay lắm ạ. Đó là một ngày nào đó, các ops của ESE sẽ tề tựu ở VN để chúng ta tổ chức Xuyên Việt. Em cũng rất mong ngày đó. Nếu có ngày đó, em xin được làm nhà chủ trì (ko phải chủ tri đâu nha) cho đoạn từ Bắc vào đến Nha Trang, dẫn mọi người đi qua những nơi mà em đã từng phải " nếm mật nằm gai". Nhưng nhanh nhanh lên nhà mình ơi. Ko lúc nhà mình tụ tập, em lại dắt con em ra chào các bác thì chồng em ko cho em "phục vụ" ai khác đâu.:tam:

[HcVcT]

It's wonderful to see the recent feedbacks. I encourage more feedbacks from everyone. This will give us more ideas to plan and carry out this wonderful thought.

I'll sum up what workaholic, LuaViet, and I had brainstormed. Again, please keep in mind that these are ideas. At this time, nothing is concrete.

First, let's start with the easier issues...

A treasurer (Thủ quỷ) and a case manager (quản lý, trông nom) should be nominated from within our staff. Some names come to our minds. Cô iPropose or cô BeBamBoo are among the names for treasurer. Anh BamBiNo or cô Hoài are among the names for case manager. Of course, we shall define the duties and responsiblities prior to fruition of this scholarship.
Of course, as cô Jeedy had already said... A board needs to be in place to evaluate, coordinate, as well as to appraise the continuous effort of the selected. This will be a democratic board in which the majority's opinion shall be final.

Now, let's talk about who, how, when, where, and why...

Who and Where: We believe it should be one from VietNam. Afterall, we believe that is where we will find one with the most need. Our focus is to find a person that we can make a difference in his/her life by supporting him/her in the educational avenue... not just English but involving English.

how: We were kicking around the idea of NOMINATION. Would it be more valuable if a candidate is nominated by a friend or a group of friends instead of asking for it him/herself? Of course, the criterias here involve the needs to enable a person to learn (or continue learning), rather than his/her popularity.

When: We hope to bring it to fruition sometimes this summer and have it in action by the fall.

Why: Because we can, because we could, and because we should. There're another thousand reasons why which I believe we all feel it.

Again, more ideas... more questions... more concern... more thoughts... We shall set a meeting soon to discuss more of this matter.

[mmm_good1]

This is such a magnificent idea. I'll supported all the way. Let me add some of my itsy bitsy opinions for this topic. I'll try to make it short and brief.

Let's start with Why?
To give a lending hand for those who wish to pursue for further education.

Who/Where: This scholarship should design to help student in needs. Therefore, the most suitable recipient would strictly for student in Vietnam. It is hard to determine who is "in needs" but we can narrow it down to those that are still in school.

How:
1. Money and Resource (sponsors, funds, and it should start from ESE staff).
2. Applications (Qualify applicants)
3. Evaluations and Interview
4. Winning Recipient.

When: When the foundation of Internal Core Members (ICM) have been set. When "sufficient" funds have been reach.

Suggestion: ICM should be someone who is very dedicated in ESE day in and day out, and is able to evaluate the applicants from day to day basis in the evaluation and interview phase of this scholarship. ICM weekly meetings should be make to analyze the funds received each week as well as discussion about our recipients.

Sponsorship/Funds: We can start by putting a banner in ESE showing our goals and great intentions. Paypal deposit is a great idea because we can keep track of deposit into our funds (I suggest 2 people to be in charge at this end). Money transfer can be directly transfer to Vietnam via 3rd party money transfer company for a tiny charge. And ofcourse, there might be sponsors in Vietnam so it is great to have 2 ICM in Vietnam.


--- There are more ideas that I want to share, but I have to go now ---

[finalmem]

thanks

[luvlybunny]

Scholarship? Wooowww, I wish I can be a good student in ESE during the time I knew ESE, but anyhow, it sounds great to me if we want to have funding for outstanding students in ESE. O:)*-:)

However, I have some thoughts about this non-profit funding so we can rethink. I'll talk about problems from instructors first. :-?
1) We are instructors but get no pay to teach. This shows that we have a big funding to teach for those who want to learn English already.
2) Some of instructors are still students and get no jobs (Ex: me...huhuhu...hic...)
3) Some will donate more & some will be less. This will make those who donate more $ feel unfair & won't participate in a long term.
4) Instructors will come & go so whoever plans to join for a short time or just join won't trust this kind of funding for scholarship. It takes a while for people to know ESE organization to donate $.

Problems from ESE students ~X(
1) We have varying students that join ESE so how can we determine which level or class that they belong to because they join the schedule fits their time only. We can't distinguish who lives in VN or other countries. Some speak English well will deal w/ English better than who live in VN.
2) Scholarships give out when we have exams but since I become one of the staffs, I see no exams given out to students at all. Exams will show who really wants to learn, studies or takes notes because scholarship isn't a free $ for those who don't take learning seriously
These are all I can think of for now but might be more issues from students.

Scholarship is great because that can help students have more motivation to study & improve. ;)Honestly, I just can't participate for now because I have financial issue at this time and trully appologize for that. :((

Good luck to those instructors are having finals next coming week 8-X

[Tu-An]

~X(
An advice taken from Ba Thim 7's post. Be careful of the saying, "too many cooks spoil the broth."

[mmm_good1]

I have some suggestions that might answer your concerned, Ms. luvly. ;;)


1) We are instructors but get no pay to teach. This shows that we have a big funding to teach for those who want to learn English already.Indeed, we're all here for a sole purpose and it's definitely not money. :x Ohhhhh... and it's not LOVE ... maybe just a little bit.


2) Some of instructors are still students and get no jobs (Ex: me...huhuhu...hic...)
This is why I think the funding should be optional and "heart-willing" from the ESE staff members.


3) Some will donate more & some will be less. This will make those who donate more $ feel unfair & won't participate in a long term.
Any help is considered help. We are not competing with other people, and we're trying to help as much as we can. Donations and Funding could be anonymous, and I'm 100% sure that ESE would appreciate any help from anyone.>:D<


4) Instructors will come & go so whoever plans to join for a short time or just join won't trust this kind of funding for scholarship. It takes a while for people to know ESE organization to donate $.
Everything takes time. It is very difficult because all of this is happening online and that's why LL, Ms.Hoai, and I suggested that we gathered enough funds before getting this running.


1) We have varying students that join ESE so how can we determine which level or class that they belong to because they join the schedule fits their time only. We can't distinguish who lives in VN or other countries. Some speak English well will deal w/ English better than who live in VN.
I mentioned in my earlier post that this scholarship should be opening to all students and of course not everybody schedule is the same, but as long as they show up in ESE and show their motivations and contributions for learning English in ESE, then they are qualified to be part of this scholarship. School enrollment can verify the status of the participants as well as location. :)]


2) Scholarships give out when we have exams but since I become one of the staffs, I see no exams given out to students at all. Exams will show who really wants to learn, studies or takes notes because scholarship isn't a free $ for those who don't take learning seriously
These are all I can think of for now but might be more issues from students.
This can be clear up once the foundation have been set. There will be criteria(s) to choose the best recipient for this scholarship.

Hopefully some of my suggestions help somewhat. I'm supporting this ESE scholarship all the way.... [-O<

[ba thim 7]

:-O
Haluuuuuuuuuuu Ms. Tu-An @};-


Be careful with your comment !. That's just a proverb , you know. And it used to use for applying OR putting into practice in some cases. Therefore you may have a flexible comprehension. Thanks so much for these!.

:thankyou:

[gdpt-]

Geez, thay Huu's posts always gimme me a headache w/ the RED and BOLD font of his. Ay da ... Anyway, I don't wanna say much, except, if we really want to execute this plan, we should schedule a conference pretty soon. Unless ya'll want to give it more time and allow other inputs to be submitted. (excuse my blackamese; it's intentional) :P

Come on, less typing and more talking! Hahahha. =]


3) Some will donate more & some will be less. This will make those who donate more $ feel unfair & won't participate in a long term.

To acknowledge these donors, we can publish an official list of contributors. That way, they'll be recognized for their altruism and kind-hearted souls.


We were kicking around the idea of NOMINATION.
As good as nominations sound, I disagree with the idea. Many of the reasons involve "popularity." What if the well-deserved of the scholarship has no friends who'll have the courage to put up a nomination? Tough luck, eh? LOL.

However, I think we can put the idea of "nomination" into good use. Recently, on facebook (a popular online network), I was invited to join a group. Basically, the group was created by a young college female to ask for votes for a scholarship she was trying to win. On the site, she posted up a biography of herself and poured out her feelings within 1-2 paragraphs about why she deserved the scholarship. Anyway, I thought it was an interesting concept.

Before we publicize the scholarship and start accepting applications, there are a few things we'll need.
- A banner. The purpose of a banner is merely to attract contributors and for advertisement purposes. The banner should redirect to a page that discloses information about our goals, which includes the amount we're targeting. Since this is our first time, we should aim for nothing higher than a scholarship of $1,000 (or lower?).

- Of course, also an electronic funding system. I understand many people cannot use online credit cards, so they might want to send checks; so we'll need an address that these checks can be send to.

- A treasurer. More precisely, one main treasurer, and one co-treasurer. These two treasurers should be agreed upon by everyone.

- A chairperson(s). One who conducts the meeting and keep track of the progress.

[mmm_good1]

Hello miss Jeedy,


As good as nominations sound, I disagree with the idea. Many of the reasons involve "popularity." What if the well-deserved of the scholarship has no friends who'll have the courage to put up a nomination? Tough luck, eh? LOL.We should have 2 sets of votes. Electoral votes (ESE staffs) and Popular votes (public). Popular votes will let the ESE staffs know who could/should be the winner and/or assist them in deciding their final decision. In the end, what count is the electoral votes.

** This is why the American Gov. is so organized **


Since this is our first time, we should aim for nothing higher than a scholarship of $1,000 (or lower?).
Woaahhhh.... Am I seeing $100 or $1,000? @-) Miss Jeedy is very kind hearted. :D

[blue_moons_1]

Gau Me_3: We should set up a bursary too, cho hoc sinh khong du kha nang kinh te^' difficult to people.
Gau Me_3: yes, khi nao` graduated from grade 12 and wanting to contine futher education,,, need not to be University,, a vocational school is ok
Gau Me_3: For this award, this person khong can^` phai hoc gioi.
Gau Me_3: nhung phai co' chut' cong lao trong xa hoi^. minh` dang song^
Gau Me_3: have done some volunteering works
Gau Me_3: and should have someone nominate this person, stating the reasons why this student should receive this award
Gau Me_3: the more nominations the better
Gau Me_3: We will have to set up a panel for this
Gau Me_3: con` van de^` tien bac thi`
Gau Me_3: we will ask for donations from anyone who would like to donate,, but, the big question is how, from whom?? this is the difficult one. Who can we trust?
Gau Me_3: by the way, the scholarship or bursary, will it given all at once,, or at each semester??


This was copied and pasted from a conversation between Moon and Mother Bear. She would love to reply to this post but she didn't have time. So Moon's trying to post some of her ideas about the scholarship for now. She will give more ideas later. Thanks Mother Bear .

[7LeHong8]

That's Ace Idea, to someone ( VIP ) donate "Scholarship" We have to think twice about that.#-o
Why? because It's some reasons:

Firstly, humanization

Secondly, through " Scholarship" we will be known by many people of the world.

Thirdly, the present time we haven't any money in account

So, may I have some Idea about " Scholarship"?

I disagree with Tu An's "Idea", why? "ESE" can't grow up with only one member, therefore, many member normally has more good Idea and full of suggestion. Moreover, leader really need our Idea to solve that matter between ourselves

The "big" matter and at first problem is MONEY. we can't solve more matter in the same time ( who & where, how & when...)because anyone, who isn't own life and own matter? ~X(therefore, If we are thinking about that & this, and make a list of things to debate, this is a long story and It be able to difficulter, as a " question difficult to answer" we should be make from STEP to STEP.

At first STEP is: We'll take up a collection now.TUY LONG HAO TAM
" Let me smile with the wise, and feel with the rich. ":x

thanks for reading.

[Tu-An]

I disagree with Tu An's "Idea"

:D I didn't give any input. No "idea" was presented. All I said was to be careful with the inputs, especially those from the naysayers. (I guess I have to be more specific.) :)>-


Edit: Based on the response of dungtamthoi, I came off as a naysayer. (?) If that's the case, I apologize. As an educator, I would never discourage the act of helping others to further their education.

From personal experience in this area in particular (fundraising), the money will come once you have a solid plan.

[dungtamthoi]

:D I didn't give any input. No "idea" was presented. All I said was to be careful with the inputs, especially those from the naysayers. (I guess I have to be more specific.) :)>-

"All I said was to be careful with the inputs, especially those from the naysayers."

Hmm ... :-$

............

[barbieq_6]

I've actually thought of this a long time ago,but i didn't know how to start? Well,this is a nice ideas from most of the staffs.. Eventhough i can't join often but please count me in :)**==

[Little_Toad]

Great Great idea! I wish I could be the prior candidate. Hope that it will soon be carried out and become a well-known scholarship for more donating and more being helped people.

[Handsome Bear]

From Tu An: "All I said was to be careful with the inputs, especially those from the naysayers."

Hmm ... :-$

............

I’m not sure what Dungtamthoi had in mind when posting the comment. However, I know one thing for sure from reading Tu-An’s post was that she did not come across as a naysayer. Actually, it’s the other way around. She came across as a strong supporter of the scholarship program =D>. The way I understood it, it sounds as if she was trying to say that if you have nothing nice to say, say nothing at all. Either that or be real careful with the negative comments.

Now, this is where I would beg to differ.

I am one of those weird people who always look for the consequences. When I trade stocks, unlike most people who dream how much they will gain, I actually decide how much I am willing to lose before submitting the trade. Before getting into a business deal, I would prepare myself how much I am willing to give up if the negotiation does not go my way. When an engineer designs a machine, he has to accept that there will be weak points in the design and assess the consequences if the machine breaks.

Therefore, if I may, I’m in favor with the negative feed backs, as long as they are meant to be constructive.

Let me put on the table few of my on-the-surface concerns.

1. First and foremost, trust. Without trust, we have nothing. Have we trusted each other enough to be able to work with the money, or our trust stopped at few people whose names we don’t even know? Trust is a funny thing. It involves emotion and logic. I’m not sure how to gain trust emotionally. It takes times, past experiences, and a lot of persuasive powers. However, in term of logic, to gain trust is to build a strong foundation for the program.

2. Foundation is where everything else starts. Businesses can be built on trust; however, there have been cases when trust fell apart. That is why there is such thing called corporation where the by-law is its constitution. How is the foundation of our program like?

3. The by-law itself is still not enough. There must be policies to support the by-law, especially in finance and accounting areas. That is why there is such thing called Sarbanes-Oxley rules and regulations. Even though they are not required for small and non-public corporations, they suggest that a system must be set up to form a mechanism for cross checking and double contingencies. As we all know, absolute power corrupts absolutely. We wouldn’t want that to happen, would we?

These are just the basic things when public money is concerned. This is one of the reasons why many small charity organizations or scholarship providers wanted to keep their organizations private.

The rest of the steps, which include setting up the infrastructure, the asset managements, and few odds and ends for a scholarship program, are just logistic. I am sure that if there is a will, there will be a way.

My points might not be well taken, and I apologize for that. I also apologize for using weird terms in my writing. I haven’t found a way to make them simpler. In addition, I do feel a bit uncomfortable raising questions without providing solutions. As they say, talks are cheap, but so far, I haven’t come up with the right answers.

After all, all I am known for is just a xí xọn handsome bear who, according to some, may be a girl and not at all handsome. :)


:thankyou:

[Mag_Na_Ni_Mi_Ty]

:)) ... Mr. HB ,,,,=))

[iPropose]

This topic came up in our conversation again during the offline meeting with anh LuaViet. BTW, it was very nice to meet you! :)

I haven't had the time to really go back and read all of the details on everyone's posts, but here's mine and some from the conversation that we had:

Candidates
There can be self-nomination, or nominations for anyone that you know can be a good candidate and would be most benefit from the scholarship. Candidate MUST have a financial need, MUST be a good standing student (I'm a bit skeptical whether to keep it just highschool students or also including college level), and MUST have excellent conduct as well as academic. Candidate DOES NOT necessarily have to and/or limit to be a Pal-Talk member, (although I think that those who can afford internet are quite financially stable) but the nominator or "the appointed ESE Staff" will have to help in providing the assistance to the candidate when it comes to the live-interviewing if needed.

Process
Once someone is nominated, the nominator will help getting the application to the candidate to officially setting the stage that we will know where to start. The candidate/nominator must provide ALL required information such as Name, Addresss, School information and academic progress (official document will need to be verified), current financial status (included and not limited to personal issue - This will be crucial information for us to determine qualifications). We will request a WRITTEN essay in either Vietnamese or English to tell us why the candidate should receive the scholarship. The essay might not need to be formal, but sufficient enough for us to consider given the academic and conduct of the person. The ESE appointed staffs WILL VERIFY ALL CONTACTS and consider all applicants to choose the best 2-3 candidates for a live-interview. The final candidate to receive the scholarship will be selected by the ESE Staff on-board. Simple enough?

Last but not least...

Money money money!
Our idea is solely on personal contribution, any amount would be helpful, and I think that it can be in any currency. A "representative" for an area might be needed so that we all could direct the contribution to that person(s) to PUBLICALLY keep track of the "pot". Any business donation (or large sum) will be accepted if offer, but I do hope the contributor to understand that we're not here to advertise for anyone. Thank you HandsomeBear for mentioning this: TRUST, TRUST, TRUST. I trust myself. Would you trust me enough to let me handle the money? :-?

We hope to give about $500 at least to the qualified candidate to help him/her getting a kick-start toward a better education and a better life. In hope of doing more and more, I'm looking forward to have this scholarship program accomplished at least every year.

...and here's my $20 to a saving account (until I know where to send the money to) to get it started.

I am available to help if you tell me what you need, or I will try sending you to the right person (hopefully). Shoot me an email at aliconcon@yahoo.com if it needs urgent attention and I shall reply within 24-hr.

Looking forward to make this "idea" a REALITY.