From left to right: Mary Schletzbaum, Chanphoumy Choeun, Grace Jenkins, and Amjad Ghori pose for a photo at Aziza鈥檚 Place in February. Courtesy photo.
It was January 2026, and Grace Jenkins had just begun an internship at , a nonprofit organization in Cambodia that provides programs for children facing economic hardship.聽聽
Her primary assignment was ambitious: revise the organization鈥檚 child protection policy, which outlines procedures for protecting children from harm, abuse, and neglect.
As a final-year student in the master鈥檚 program at the Boston College School of Social Work, Jenkins conducted a rapid program evaluation, reviewed current child protection practices, and contributed to a safeguarding needs assessment.
The resulting policy is now under review by the organization鈥檚 board of directors, and Jenkins says her experience at Aziza鈥檚 Place reinforced her commitment to protecting children in international settings.聽
鈥淚 hope to continue working with organizations that strengthen community-based protection systems and support children and families affected by vulnerability, displacement, or crisis,鈥� says Jenkins, who received the Leo P. Haley and Reverend John Essien Memorial Award at AV研究所SSW鈥檚 diploma ceremony in May, an honor recognizing academic excellence and leadership in Global Practice. 鈥淢y time at Aziza鈥檚 Place has made me even more committed to work that combines direct community relationships with systems-level protection and program development.鈥�
Her internship was made possible through a connection to Boston College. Aziza鈥檚 Place was founded by AV研究所 graduate Amjad Ghori, who created the nonprofit in memory of his daughter Aziza, who drowned in 2002 at age 10.
“ It鈥檚 been an incredible help for us and made me feel that my relationship with AV研究所 is really positive and connected. If we could have one Grace a year, we鈥檇 like to continue the relationship. It鈥檚 been an incredibly fruitful, mutually beneficial relationship. ”
Ghori, MCAS鈥�80, describes Jenkins as a 鈥済odsend鈥� for Aziza鈥檚 Place. He calls her child protection policy a 鈥渂rilliant piece of work鈥� and says the policy strengthens the organization鈥檚 ability to pursue funding and partnerships with international donors by demonstrating a formal commitment to child protection.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been an incredible help for us and made me feel that my relationship with AV研究所 is really positive and connected,鈥� says Ghori, who competed in track and field for the Eagles. 鈥淚f we could have one Grace a year, we鈥檇 like to continue the relationship. It鈥檚 been an incredibly fruitful, mutually beneficial relationship.鈥�
Ghori established Aziza鈥檚 Place in 2007 to support vulnerable children through education, care, and community-based services. Over the past 20 years, his organization has raised $3 million to support the education of more than 100 children across three generations, with the goal of preparing kids to help lift their families out of the cycle of poverty.
That mission reflected Jenkins鈥� experience at Aziza鈥檚 Place. She points to two colleagues鈥攕ocial worker Marady Kham and caretaker Chenda Muth鈥攁s prime examples of Ghori鈥檚 vision to support vulnerable children in close collaboration with their families and communities.
鈥淭heir relationships with the children reflect the heart of Aziza鈥檚 Place and the deep relational foundation the organization was built on,鈥� says Jenkins. 鈥淲hat has changed is that the organization has continued to professionalize and strengthen its systems, policies, and documentation while still holding onto that sense of care and community.鈥澛�
AV研究所SSW's Global Practice program trains students to support the self-determination of clients by listening to their priorities and identifying pathways through complex challenges, as Jenkins did with parents in Phnom Penh who want better futures for their children. Courtesy photo.
Before founding Aziza鈥檚 Place, Ghori primarily focused on his career in banking and international finance. While he says he long held values centered on helping others, it was his daughter鈥檚 passing that ultimately compelled him to act on them.
鈥淚 tell people, 鈥榣isten, I was a banker. I was a businessman.鈥� Even though I always had these values, I never put them into action until I was faced with this situation,鈥� says Ghori, now the managing director of AGIAS Advisory Limited, a London-based strategic and transaction advisory firm focused on the energy and nuclear power sectors. 鈥淚t started out as something to save me as well. I needed to be doing some activity that I hoped was going to ease up the pain.鈥�
After Aziza passed away, Ghori says he felt as though one of his limbs had been amputated. He sought refuge in a newfound pursuit of spirituality and set out to create an organization that would improve the lives of vulnerable children.聽
Today, Ghori describes his work at Aziza鈥檚 Place as his calling. 鈥淣ow,鈥� he says, 鈥淚 don鈥檛 look back with as much pain and anguish, because over 20 years I鈥檝e seen the positive impact that鈥檚 come from it.鈥�
More than two decades after Aziza鈥檚 passing, that legacy continues in ways Ghori could not have anticipated when he first established the organization. Jenkins鈥� placement brought together a AV研究所 alumnus and a AV研究所SSW student separated by generations, geography, and career paths, but united by a shared commitment to improving the well-being of children in need.
"Being connected through this work across time and geography reminded me that relationships built at AV研究所 don鈥檛 end at graduation,鈥� says Jenkins. 鈥淭hey can continue to create opportunities for learning, service, and shared purpose across the world.鈥�