The temple donated land to build a school.

From National Highway 1, follow the road to the gate of Prek On Dok Pagoda (Nhu Gia Commune, Can Tho City), witness the excitement of students being taken to school by their parents. Thanh Phu 3 Primary School (main point) with spacious classrooms and airy playgrounds are the best conditions to help students on their journey to find letters and knowledge. Thach Tuyet Phuong (student of Thanh Phu 3 Primary School) shared: "The school has a large yard with many trees, helping us to play comfortably."

Thanh Phu 3 Primary School (main campus) was built on the land of Prek On Dok Pagoda. Mr. Duong Hung Minh, Principal of Thanh Phu 3 Primary School, said that the school has 21 classes with nearly 600 students studying in 2 campuses.

The main point of the school is spaciously invested on an area of over 4,000m² with 11 classrooms, serving over 300 students studying each year. The school has a mini football field, a student playground, and a school garden to serve learning and experience. Thanks to the land donation of Prek On Dok pagoda, the school was built as spacious as it is today.

This is a favorable condition for children, especially Khmer children, to attend class regularly and study best. “Initially, the classrooms and playgrounds for children were very small. After the pagoda donated land, the locality invested in facilities, the school was built spaciously, with an airy playground for children. Over the years, the school has been recognized as meeting national standards, and the quality of students' learning has also improved day by day,” said Mr. Duong Hung Minh.

Prek On Dok Pagoda also donated thousands of square meters of land to build Thanh Phu Secondary and High School for Ethnic Minorities and the Center for Vocational Education - Continuing Education, helping Khmer children have the opportunity to study long-term, contributing to improving people's knowledge, eliminating illiteracy and preserving cultural identity.

Venerable Lam Chanh Sam Nang, abbot of Prek On Dok Pagoda, said: “The pagoda always pays attention to education and training. Because if education and training are not paid attention to, the country will find it difficult to develop. The pagoda has donated land for the State to build schools to serve the children's education.”

In recent years, Nhu Gia commune has focused on investing in infrastructure and mobilizing many social resources to build spacious and modern schools. Every year, the rate of mobilizing school-age students to attend school reaches 100%; school facilities and equipment are invested and upgraded; the rate of mobilizing students at all levels meets the assigned targets; maintaining the commune's level 2 literacy standards; universalizing primary education and universalizing lower secondary education at level 3. Up to now, the commune has 9/10 schools recognized as meeting national standards at level 1 and 1 school meeting national standards at level 2.

Mr. Nguyen Quoc Hung, Vice Chairman of Nhu Gia Commune People's Committee emphasized: "The pagoda has voluntarily donated over 21,868m² of land to build educational facilities, such as: Thanh Phu 3 Primary School; Thanh Phu Secondary and High School for Ethnic Minorities; Vocational Education Center - Continuing Education. This is not only material support but also demonstrates the spirit of "protecting the nation, bringing peace to the people" of Buddhism, contributing to creating better learning conditions for Khmer children and students in the area."

Prek On Dok Pagoda is also a place to train and nurture many generations of Khmer monks and students. Venerable Lam Chanh Sam Nang added: “At Prek On Dok Pagoda, every summer vacation, Khmer classes are opened for children in the village, helping them learn to write, read and speak well. Here, children learn about etiquette, ethics, lifestyle, and the spirit of studying hard to become useful people in the future, contributing to the development of the country. In addition, the pagoda also opens classes to teach Pali.”

Talking about the silent but great contributions of Prek On Pagoda, Mr. Duong Si Thal (residing in Nhu Gia commune) said: “This is the determination and aspiration of previous generations of monks. In particular, the late Venerable Duong Nhon had a meeting with the Pagoda Management Board, thereby assessing the necessity and positive aspects of paying attention to educational work with great significance”.

With the spirit of "good life, good religion", Prek On Dok pagoda in Nhu Gia commune is writing a beautiful story about the connection between religion and life.

Source: https://cand.com.vn/doi-song/nha-chua-hien-dat-xay-truong-i783790/