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Cassie Phillips in Battambang

  • Story Highlights
  • Cassie Phillips will report on her experiences in Battambang, Cambodia
  • She has teamed up with the NGO Homeland that operates in the country
  • Over the year Cassie will work with children from rough backgrounds
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(CNN) -- The coming months will help define Cassandra "Cassie" Phillips and help shape her direction in life. So, as you will soon see, her time in Battambang, Cambodia will be very special.

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An accomplished traveler, there are a lot of things about Cambodia and her mission there that remain unknown, even as Cassie gets settled into her very hot and humid new environment.

Cassie is one of four daughters and is a native of Denver, Colorado. She was a high school track star and says she still wants to run a marathon down the road.

At 22, Cassie is the youngest member of the Be the Change team and a recent graduate of Duke University, where her major field of study was in public policy, with a minor in economics.

"Right now I'm enjoying the freedom and flexibility of my life," Cassie writes. "I'm very happy to learn more about myself, new people and places. I'm not sure where I will be in five years, but I can't wait to find out."

She is a Hart Leadership Program Fellow and has teamed up with the NGO Homeland in Cambodia, where she'll work with kids who've already had a rough start in life. Some were abused, some abandoned, others sold into the sex trade, still others living with the stigma of HIV. The job will no doubt be challenging and rewarding.

Cassie has a background in Spanish, but it may not be of much help as she tackles a new language -- Khmer.

Her biggest challenge so far is getting the lay of the land. You'll want to follow Cassie as she tries new things, hones her research project and explores the wonders of Cambodia. E-mail to a friend E-mail to a friend

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