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Twenty-four-year-old Sokhom Mao was one of California’s foster kids. He’s one of the few who went on to college – in 2010, Mao graduated from San Francisco State University. That makes him a rarity among foster youth. Now that he’s an adult, he’s working to reform what he calls a broken system.
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Broadcast History
KALW 91.7FM:
April 6, 2011
Transcript
** This piece includes a program ID break for KALW News. For a version without the break, please contact us via PRX. **
Sixty-three thousand children are wards of the state, but they’re not living in one of California’s six correctional facilities. Instead, they’re living in the foster care system.
SOKHOM MAO: My name is Sokhom Mao, and I was born in Oakland, California.
Twenty-four-year-old Sokhom Mao was one of California’s foster kids. He’s one of the few who went on to college – in 2010, Mao graduated from San Francisco State University. That makes him a rarity among foster youth. Now that he’s an adult, he’s working to reform what he calls a broken system.
Mao’s story begins in Cambodia.
REPORTER: Nearly 2 million people died in the killing fields of Cambodia – a quarter of the country's population lost in less than four years. One man above all was responsible for this secret...
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