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Membership in such associations as TEA (Teachers of English Awards) and the American Councils' sponsored SSEP (Secondary Schools Excellence Program) has resulted in opportunities for students to visit other countries. In 2003, ten students and two teachers from Kovel City Gymnasium traveled to ?harleston, South Carolina, in the United States, and spent three weeks there, living with host families, attending classes and activities at North Charleston High School,, touring many sites of interest in the area, and visiting New York City. In 2004, ten more students traveled with two teachers to Kane, Pennsylvania, again staying with host families, participating in classes of their choice at Kane Area High School, taking part in extra curricular activities, such as sports, music, and Homecoming Weekend, and touring Washington, DC and Niagara Falls, New York. In June of 2005, these same Kovel students played host to the boys and girls from Kane when they visited Ukraine for three weeks. Many excursions took place including a festival of arts and crafts in Lublin, Poland, where students from Kovel and their American guests participated, demonstrating such crafts as baking bread, making necklaces, scrapbooking, and seed art. It was good to see these good friends again; these good relationships will last for a lifetime. In May, 2005, a third group of students from Kovel spent several days in Poland, again staying with host families, and learning about Polish traditions and culture. As part of that visit, they traveled to Warsaw for the European Youth Unity parade and the celebration of Poland's first anniversary as a member of the European Union. The Polish students will also return the visit, and are planning to come to Kovel in September. All of these international visits were arranged as a result of TEA and SSEP collaborations, which encourage the exchange of cultures, traditions, and friendships between students of many nations. Such exchanges create lasting feelings of good will and appreciation of one another's cultures and values, which are necessary for good international relationships as we move into the 21st century. Membership in TEA and SSEP is open to all teachers who wish to take advantage of the opportunities for international exchange that are available to them and their students. |