This year, the Sister City exchange program teamed up with Pinellas County schools. Students who live in Clearwater and are enrolled in a foreign language have an opportunity to go to Japan.

In order to apply for the trip over the summer, you must have a history of voluntary services, an un-weighted GPA of 3.5 or higher, and much more. For more requirements you can go to your foreign language teacher for an application and a pamphlet listing all the requirements.

Once you meet all the requirements, Mrs. Hlavacka, Spanish teacher, explained, “You can then apply for the program, yet you’re not guaranteed a spot”. The applications will go to the Sister-City exchange for review. After students have been chosen, they will notified about the next steps. Students will be given a list of dates and the events. Most of the events are orientation meetings, and volunteer dates. With the meetings students will learn how to great the families, what the city is like, and how to speak some basic Japanese.

Once the student has finished and attended all meetings, they are ready to fly out. Freshman Corey Downs explained, “I wanted to apply for the trip; it’s an amazing opportunity that doesn’t come by very often”. While in Nagano, the students will stay with a family for a week. The families will take the kids to various sights and teach them about their culture. As Mrs. Hlavacka stated, “it’s a great opportunity for the students; it really opens their eyes about other countries and cultures”. Although the application due date has already passed, the Sister-City Exchange is “contemplating an exchange through the city of St. Petersburg”, Mrs. Hlavacka said. If you are interested in future trips you can refer to the Sister-City Exchange website or to you foreign language teacher for more information.