As Thanksgiving approaches and the Ashford students and teachers fly back home, I find myself reflecting on all the people (on both sides of the Atlantic) who have made this partnership possible. There are the brave Ashford and Einstein students who, after years of staying within their own communities due to Covid, bravely chose this global adventure. And, I'm thankful to the Ashford parents and families who trusted us with their children and the Einstein parents and families who treated our students like their own. Herr Seggelmann chose such wonderful families to host our students. Herr Seggelmann and his colleagues planned an amazing exchange. They covered all the details, made all the arrangements, brought us on the most fascinating day trips, and gave our students a life changing experience. I have loved collaborating with Einstein teachers over the years. Every time I see them, it feels like connecting with an old friend. Speaking of very special teachers, Mr. Busse and Mr. Young deserve all of our thanks. They left their homes and families for weeks to become part of this international family of sorts. Without them, we wouldn’t even have an exchange this year. They were our ambassadors helping students develop friendships and strengthening the partnership between our schools. And, Mr. Calabrese and Ms. Baumgartner worked hard to prepare our students through intensive German classes, emergency German cards, and in general helping with the trip. But it’s not just the teachers who make this possible-- we are so lucky to have administrators that not only trust the teachers but are above and beyond supportive of the exchange. Herr Droste, Mrs. Borysevicz, and Mrs. Ford’s commitment to global learning is truly commendable. And, in the 50th anniversary year of the German American Partnership Program (GAPP), I would like to extend a heartfelt thanks to the Goethe Institute for facilitating GAPP exchanges, providing us with resources and support, and for the financial support that enables us to provide this opportunity at a low cost cost so that it is accessible to our students. GAPP has changed the culture of our school by making our community more global. About five years ago, Maik Seggelmann sent our school an email. We had signed up for an email list about STEM partnerships with schools in Germany with the hopes that we could do some projects together over Skype. Maik had much bigger ideas. He invited our school to travel all the way to Germany so that we could work with students at Einstein on STEM projects related to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. It was scary bringing 20 students to a place we had never been at the innovation of a teacher that we had never met in person. But it was almost as if our schools were meant to be together. So, although I thanked him above, I really do need to thank Herr Seggelmann again for seeing the potential in our partnership and making it happen. Although the Ashford students have left Germany, this isn’t goodbye. We are excited to welcome Einstein students to Ashford in May. While they are here we are planning to bring them on lots of exciting adventures and to do some activities related to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. If you are interested in helping to plan for the May exchange or other global programs at Ashford School, please email me at [email protected]. It is an exciting time for global collaborations!
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorsMr. Young Archives
November 2022
Categories |