Ponheary Ly Foundation
| Ponheary Ly Foundation | |
|---|---|
| Khmer name | — |
| Common name | PLF |
| Type | Cambodia aid |
| Focus areas | Education; school sponsorship; university scholarships; rural children in northwestern Cambodia |
| Business type | — |
| Location | Austin,Texas,United States |
| HQ country | USA |
| Address | P.O. Box 302243, Austin, TX 78703 |
| Founded | 2006 |
| EIN (US only) | 20-4277315 |
| Website | https://www.theplf.org |
| Donation | Donate to this organization |
| Contact | 512-589-3921 |
| Languages | — |
| Sponsoring org | — |
| Award amount | — |
| Eligibility | — |
| Application window | — |
| Apply | — |
| Impact geography | Cambodia (Siem Reap Province and northwestern provinces) |
| — | |
| — | |
| YouTube | — |
| TikTok | — |
| X | — |
| — | |
| Status | active |
| Last verified | 2026-09-16 by WikiSysop |
| Sources | |
| — | |
Overview
The Ponheary Ly Foundation (PLF) is a US-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit that supports the education of children in rural northwestern Cambodia. It was co-founded in 2006 by Ponheary Ly, a Cambodian teacher and tour guide who survived the Khmer Rouge regime, and Lori Carlson, a Texas visitor who met Ly in Siem Reap in 2005. Ly's father, an educator, was killed during the Khmer Rouge period. After the regime, Ly worked as a Siem Reap tour guide and began quietly using tips to buy school supplies for children she encountered in the villages around Angkor. When Carlson visited on tour, Ly guided her; the two founded PLF the following year in Austin, Texas, to formalize and scale the school-support work.
PLF's programs focus on keeping rural Cambodian children in school and progressing toward higher education. Its core initiatives include school sponsorship (partnering with rural primary and secondary schools), a university scholarship program for graduates continuing to higher education, technical and vocational training (TVET) placements, distribution of school supplies and uniforms, bicycle programs to reduce commute barriers to school attendance, and school-based health and nutrition support. The foundation reports supporting roughly 2,800 students annually across its partner schools and scholarship cohorts.
PLF operates a US-based board of directors headquartered in Austin, with in-country program staff in Siem Reap. Its Cambodia-facing work is carried out by Ponheary Ly and her family, who continue to lead field operations. The foundation is registered with the IRS under EIN 20-4277315 (exemption granted 2006) and publishes its Form 990 annually via ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer and Guidestar/Candid.
Sources
- https://www.theplf.org
- https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/204277315
- https://apps.irs.gov/app/eos/