Unique highland school rewards outstanding students with Ngoc Linh ginseng seedlings

A breakthrough from a "special" closing ceremony

Award ceremony at Tra Nam School

On the morning of May 29, 2026, in the joyful atmosphere of the final days of the school year, Tra Nam Semi-Boarding Ethnic Primary and Lower Secondary School (located in Tra Linh commune) solemnly held its closing and commendation ceremony to honor students with outstanding academic achievements for the 2025–2026 school year.

This year's ceremony drew special attention from parents and the local community due to an unprecedented change. When the names of good and outstanding students were called, the awards they received on the honors podium were no longer standard packs of notebooks or familiar pencil boxes; instead, they were lush green potted Ngoc Linh ginseng seedlings. This is considered one of the most distinctive and culturally rooted forms of commendation ever seen in the highland school system.

According to the school's summary report, during the 2025–2026 school year, a total of 338 pupils were enrolled across primary and lower secondary grades. Thanks to the dedicated efforts of both teachers and students in overcoming hardships, 51 students were honored with good and outstanding academic titles by the year's end. Among them, 8 were good students at the lower secondary level, and 43 achieved outstanding results at the primary level.

To encourage these 51 studious role models, the school decided to present each of them with 5 Ngoc Linh ginseng seedlings. All the seedlings are already two years old, vigorous, and hold a current market value of around 200,000 VND per plant. Thus, each gift package taken home carries a material value of up to 1 million VND—a significant amount for highland families, yet even more meaningful is the long-term livelihood potential that this rare and precious medicinal crop brings.

Shifting mindsets based on the realities of boarding life

Regarding this initiative, Mr. Vo Dang Chin, Principal of the school, explained that Tra Linh commune is a key region where many local households live and sustain their livelihoods by growing Ngoc Linh ginseng under forest canopies. Furthermore, because it is an ethnic semi-boarding school, most students eat, sleep, and live on campus. All essential textbooks and learning tools needed for teaching and studying are already fully and proactively provided by the school from the beginning of the school year.

Consequently, giving out more notebooks at the end of the year would only create an unnecessary surplus and fail to optimize value. Arising from this practical reality, the management board and teachers of Tra Nam Semi-Boarding Ethnic Primary and Lower Secondary School discussed and agreed to innovate the commendation format to make it truly practical and suitable for the local needs and soil conditions.

The funds for this meaningful activity were drawn partly from the school's official commendation budget, while the rest was contributed through the enthusiastic support of several teachers who are also engaged in cultivating ginseng in the area.

Planting seeds of knowledge, harvesting the future

This year-end gift extends beyond mere material value to carry profound educational and livelihood-building significance. Since the students are still young, after receiving the ginseng seedlings at the closing ceremony, parents and family members will bring them home to plant, nurture, and propagate them under ecological forest canopies on the children's behalf.

As these ginseng plants mature and yield harvest, they will become an important financial contributor to household economies, while creating a dependable savings reserve to support the children's journey toward higher levels of education.

“The school hopes this gift will not only motivate their academic spirits, but also help students raise their awareness of environmental conservation and forge a bond with Ngoc Linh ginseng—our signature local medicinal herb,” shared Mr. Vo Dang Chin, Principal of the school.

The harmonious blend of academic education and local agricultural development at Tra Nam School has opened up a highly promising path. Concluding the ceremony, school leaders affirmed that, based on positive feedback from parents and practical results, the school plans to continue maintaining and expanding this unique ginseng-seedling reward format in upcoming school years./.