Background info on Khan Academy Vietnam
Kien Pham
<kienpham@neverchange.com>I want to express my deep gratitude to you for your friendship and interest in what the Vietnam Foundation does with Khan Academy Vietnam. You have seen firsthand how it works for schoolchildren and the potential still ahead for large-scale implementation across Vietnam.
I would like to request your consideration for joining this meaningful journey where the impact is visible and the efficiency is stunning. Please help and spread the good news so your friends and family could also join and help make a difference.
Below is the written description of VNF and KAV plus news articles about our impact. You can read through the materials or you could simply listen to this AI-driven audio summary created by our talented team in Hanoi: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bT4OLp1crcU
You can direct your tax-exempt donation check to:
The Vietnam Foundation
c/o Ms. To-Anh Pham, VNF Treasurer
990 Chapel Hill Way
San Jose, CA 95122
In case you need it, our US nonprofit tax ID is 01-0905269.
And here is the basic pitch: One penny per month or 12 cents per year for each child to have Khan Academy in classroom. $12 can help 100 kids. $120 can help 1,000 kids. $1,200 can help 10,000 kids. $12,000 can help 100,000 kids. $120,000 can help 1,000,000 kids.
And Kien is looking for matching donation of $250,000 in 2026.
Many many thanks to each of you, kp
Background Information on The Vietnam Foundation and its Khan Academy Vietnam program
The Vietnam Foundation (VNF) is a US non-profit 501(c)(3) organization established in Washington DC in 2008 and has a field office in Vietnam under an operating permit issued by the Vietnamese government. All donations to VNF or its programs such as Khan Academy Vietnam (KAV) are tax-deductible according to US laws. Our annual budget is below $500,000 and our expenditures are reviewed by US tax accountants and filed under US law every year. In short, VNF is legally accountable to the US government and its annual budget is transparent and publicly available.
Since 2019, VNF has partnered with Khan Academy USA (khanacademy.org) to launch KAV (vi.khanacademy.org) in order to provide free, high-quality online educational lessons to schools, teachers and students across Vietnam. KAV has become a resounding success, recognized by the international community and putting Vietnam as the number two country in the world beside the US for using the Khan Academy platform in classrooms. The program has trained over 100,000 teachers in more than 6,800 public schools to integrate digital tools into their classroom teaching. The results of our program have been impressive. KAV has reached over 2.5 million students-half of them are girls-empowering them to excel in STEM subjects and beyond. This is especially significant in rural and remote areas, where educational resources are often limited, and gender disparities in education can persist. Since our launch, the learners have logged over 600 million minutes of active learning, with a growth rate of 3 times vs. year ago in 2023, and 4 times vs. year ago in 2024. More remarkably, the learners have come from all corners of Vietnam from the biggest cities to the smallest villages in remote mountainous areas as well as the rural Mekong Delta. Please spend the next 6 minutes to watch the following video clip so you can quickly understand our mission and achievements:
KAV introduction video in English: https://youtu.be/Lv-YdRfmbfo?si=thzdLs0TiiinzcDi
The program offers a diverse range of subjects, including Mathematics, Science, Coding, Financial Literacy, Internet Safety, and SAT, available in both English and Vietnamese. These courses are designed to foster curiosity and equip students with the skills needed to thrive in a rapidly changing digital landscape. Importantly, the program has become a vital platform for young girls, empowering them to excel in traditionally underrepresented fields like STEM, unlocking their potential, and inspiring a new generation of female leaders.
You can also read success stories in the articles below:
Article 1: In 2024, Vietnam ranked second globally with over two million users on Khan Academy, reflecting a significant shift toward digital and personalized learning in the country’s education system.
Article 2: Despite having only 20 computers for over 400 students, the teachers at Pung Luong Day School in Mu Cang Chai go above and beyond to ensure their students can access Khan Academy’s online learning platform. Their dedication has resulted in significant progress, with over half the students regularly engaging in lessons, highlighting the power of perseverance in transforming education.
Article 3: Khan Academy Vietnam is empowering female students across urban and remote areas to excel in STEM by providing free, accessible courses in subjects like math, programming, and digital skills. These efforts are breaking stereotypes, fostering self-confidence, and inspiring girls to pursue STEM, shaping a more inclusive future.
Article 4: The article highlights how a Vietnamese-American teacher in California created a free online English class that now reaches nearly 300 students across Vietnam using Khan Academy and interactive digital tools. It shows how technology-enabled, borderless education can expand access to high-quality learning while building confidence and global skills for young Vietnamese students.
Article 5: Khan Academy and VNF plan to launch Khanmigo - an educational AI tool on the Khan Academy platform - in Vietnam in November 2025. VNF has been working closely with the Vietnamese Ministry of Education and Training to support the safe and effective integration of AI into Vietnamese schools by leveraging the capabilities of this powerful AI tool.
How to Contribute
Given your interest and capacity, we would like to request a generous donation from you so KAV can expand its program to more cities and villages in Vietnam where school children are hungry for learning and teachers are thirsty for better materials to teach. Together, you and we can make a profound difference in the lives of young Vietnamese people through education. You can make your donation by cheque/wire transfer or credit card/debit card/Paypal online at: https://vnfoundation.org/en/donate-programs/. We can be reached for any further information at in...@vnfoundation.org.Kien Pham
Imperfect Servant of the People
VN Mobile and WhatsApp: +84-98-5656-566
"You make a living by what you get and a life by what you give"
Sorry if you see typos. This email comes from a blind man on mobile device!
Kien Pham
<kienpham@vnfoundation.org>As we are leaving the lovely Sapa this morning, I want to give you the latest tally on our joining hands to support school kids in VIetnam.
During the last 5 days, you have pledged $169,500 ranging from $1,000 to $50,000. Just unbelievable and breaking all of our set goals. That means you are helping more than 1.5 million kids learn Khan Academy in classroom. Some of you have not taken action yet so we might cross the finish line at 2 million kids receiving help from your Vietnam visit! I believe, with our stage in life and capacity, such lofty ambition is not out of reach.
Even though the original email below provided relevant info, I just want to give even more clarity on what the Vietnam Foundation (VNF) and Khan Academy Vietnam (KAV) are doing.
VNF is a US nonprofit and we are fully accountable to US laws and regulations. We file a 990 tax report every year by a professional tax CPA in the US. We receive no money from the US government or any government. Last summer, GSB dispatched two MBA consultants, at my request, to put together a fundraising plan for VNF so it can scale. Both consultants worked on nonprofit clients at BCG and they did a great job for VNF. I will send a copy of their report to you. Your donation goes to VNF.
KAV is the primary program of VNF at this point. Virtually all of our expenditures go to the KAV program since it is so cost effective. KAV is not an independent entity but you can designate your VNF donation to KAV. I assume all of you want to do so.
As a sidenote, the Vietnam Education Foundation VEF is a program that I started 23 years ago to help Vietnam produce a new generation of young scientists under a US law with funding from the US Congress. I left that program in 2006 and that program was closed down in 2018 per US law. It has nothing to do with VNF or KAV.
Please let me know if anything is still unclear to you. Honestly, if you still have unanswered question on KAV or VNF after seeing what we saw together, then I need to step up in my communication. As a touchy-feely graduate, I am ready for improvement! :-)
Again, words cannot describe my gratitude to your friendship and generosity. Plese keep us in your future giving.
Your friend, kp
Kien Pham
President
The Vietnam Foundation
>https://youtu.be/Lv-YdRfmbfo?si=thzdLs0TiiinzcDi