College Prep Juniors Awarded Scholarships to Travel to Japan

College Prep juniors Christopher H. and Alice W. have been awarded scholarships to travel to Japan.

College Prep juniors look forward to their adventures in Japan later this year.

Both students study Japanese at College Prep and will travel to Fukuoka, Japan in the spring of 2008 for ten-day stays with host families.  They will also host exchange students from Japan later in the year. Mr. H. was awarded a joint scholarship from All Nippon Airways and the Oakland Fukuoka Sister City Association for the essay he submitted.  Ms. W. received a scholarship from the Oakland Rotary Club based upon her academic achievements and interview.

To qualify for this program, the students had to satisfy the criteria of being a current high-school junior and studying Japanese. Mr. H. took Advance Placement (AP) Japanese during his sophomore year and plans to pursue linguistics in college. Ms. W. is currently in Japanese III and is interested in Japanese language and culture.

These all-inclusive scholarships cover round-trip international travel and placement with a carefully selected host family. During their stay in Fukuoka, the students will spend time sightseeing and being immersed in the local Japanese culture. Ms. W. will also be giving a speech in Japanese to the Fukuoka Rotary Club and the Japan Foundation

"I am happy that my students will have an opportunity to practice their communication skills as well as test their socio-cultural competence that they learned in the class," states Atsuko Morse, Japanese teacher at College Prep. "Getting a chance to travel before college allows them to enrich their language experience and expand their horizon.  They will come back with a better understanding and awareness of another part of the world."

College Prep provides opportunities to study French, Spanish, Japanese and Latin, all to advanced levels, and continues to encourage student participation in exchange programs. In fall of 2008 College Prep will introduce a Mandarin program.