On the morning of May 29, the closing ceremony of the 2025 - 2026 school year at Tra Nam Ethnic Minority Boarding Primary and Secondary School, Tra Linh commune, Da Nang city took place in a very special way. High-achievement students not only received certificates of merit, but also were awarded Ngoc Linh ginseng seedlings - a plant considered a "national treasure" in the western mountainous region of Da Nang.
According to Mr. Vo Dang Chin - Principal of Tra Nam Ethnic Minority Boarding Primary and Secondary School, this school year has 338 students, including 201 primary school students and 137 secondary school students. At the end of the school year, 51 students achieved the title of excellent and excellent students.
The difference is that each excellent student received 5 Ngoc Linh ginseng seedlings. In total, the school awarded 255 ginseng seedlings to the students at the closing ceremony.
“A few years ago, the main rewards were notebooks and certificates of merit. This year, the school wants to change it with a gift that is both meaningful to encourage learning and associated with the local livelihood, so it chose Ngoc Linh ginseng seedlings to give to students,” Mr. Chin shared.
To have enough seedlings to reward, the school deducts from the reward fund, and at the same time mobilizes more from ginseng-growing households in the area. Many teachers working at the school, who grow ginseng, also join hands to support seedlings to encourage the learning spirit of highland students.
According to Mr. Vo Dang Chin, this is the first year the school has implemented this unique award form. Not only stopping at praising academic achievements, the gift also sends expectations to help students and families access a livelihood model suitable for local conditions.
Ngoc Linh ginseng is a plant with high economic value, suitable for the climate and soil of Tra Linh mountainous region. For many students in difficult circumstances, the seedlings awarded today can become a small but practical resource, nurturing more hope to continue going to school.
From a graduation ceremony in the highlands, the reward with Ngoc Linh ginseng not only surprised students and parents but also suggested a new way of rewarding: promoting education associated with livelihoods, and education associated with the lives of mountainous people.
