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Alyssa Travis: Spreading the Hope in Cambodia

Her Campus Placeholder Avatar Jessica Cooper
Her Campus Placeholder Avatar Yael Schusterman
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Arizona chapter.

Namee: Alyssa Travis  
Hometown: Tucson, Arizona
Major: Marketing
Minor: English
Graduation Year: May 2010
Hobbies: Singing, writing, weight lifting, yoga, spending time with family and friends, crocheting, reading edifying novels, and finger painting.


Living on the edge of Cambodia is Poipet, Alyssa Travis, UA alum has spent the last month helping the children of Cambodia find a safe haven.  This fun-loving individual is shedding her positivity and plans to continue to so for the next three months. 

 
HC: What exactly is it that you’re doing over in Cambodia?
Alyssa:I am working with the Cambodia Hope Organization which is a Christian NGO based in Poipet, Cambodia and helping them with their marketing. This organization helps take a stand against human sex trafficking, and creating a Safe Haven Center for the children. I am also teaching English and working with the children of Poipet.

HC: Why Cambodia?
Alyssa:I attended a conference last January in Phoenix about sex trafficking in south-east Asia and the story of Cambodia really stuck with me. I knew I had wanted to travel after graduation; this was a great way for me to travel and help with the struggles in Cambodia.
HC: How long is your stay?
Alyssa:The program in 4 months, January 31st to May 31st.
 
HC: Have you always wanted to do a program like this?
Alyssa:I have always had to desire to travel and I’ve known for about 10 years that this, or something similar, was what I wanted to do. I wanted to be able to encourage education and protect children.
HC: Have you done much traveling before?
Alyssa: I did a summer internship through the Eller Business School in the summer of 2008 in Madrid. I kept a travel blog the whole time I was there. Prior to Cambodia I traveled to Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam. Afterwards I’ll be traveling to Turkey, Italy, France, and Spain with some friends.
                                
HC: What has been the most rewarding part of your experience thus far?
Alyssa:It was hard at first when I got here, adjusting wasn’t easy and I almost forgot why I was here. Seeing the kids for the first time reminded me what I am here to do. I am really treasuring this experience.
 
 
HC: What has been the most difficult part of the experience thus far?
Alyssa:  The most difficult part about my time in Cambodia thus far is…well, the squat toilets. Originally I had mentioned the lack of infrastructure and the poverty in the country, but the people in Cambodia are very generous and friendly. The people I work with have been very supportive and helpful…and amazing, as well as extremely articulate. It seems unfair to dwell on the negative here when the Cambodians around me have been so encouraging.
 
 
HC: What are your plans for the future?
Alyssa:Who knows?! I would like to eventually get my MBA possibly at Yale. They are #1 in non-profit organization and have an amazing program all about genocide. Some day I would like to start my own non-profit.
 
For more information on the organization Alyssa is working with visit: http://www.cambodianhopeorganization.org/home.html

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My name is Jessica Cooper and in the Fall I will be a Senior at the University of Arizona. I am majoring in journalism with a dual minor in history and judaic studies. My focus is in both print and online journalism. I have loved being a part of the Her Campus team for the last semester and am so excited to be the campus correspondant for the 2011-2012 year.
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Yael Schusterman is a journalism senior at the University of Arizona. She has freelanced for half a dozen publications and is ready to transition from a print to an online focus. She maintains a permanent residence in New Jersey and her goal is to live in Manhattan. The AP wire has picked up one of her stories, "Theft at gallery yields sale to help artists," as member enterprise while working for The Arizona Daily Star in Tucson. She looks forward to working with the Her Campus Team and spreading awareness on the UA campus.