West Liberty students invited to study in China

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West Liberty High School students will have the opportunity to visit China as part of a program led by the Stanley Center for Peace and Security in Muscatine and Shijiazhuang Foreign Language School.

Shijiazhuang is Muscatine’s sister city and is trying to get an academic delegation to come to China, explained high school principal Brenda Arthur-Miller at the Dec. 16 West Liberty School Board meeting.

The intention was to have a delegation of 90 students, but Muscatine officials did not think they could attract that many students on their own. So, they decided to open the opportunity to students from Iowa City, West Liberty and Wilton.

Arthur-Miller said West Liberty had spots available for 10 students and two adult chaperones, and the trip was tentatively scheduled for March 15-22, which is West Liberty’s spring break week. She said the cost per student would be $250 each, which would cover their visas. The rest of the cost of the trip would be covered by the Stanley Center.

Social studies teachers James Laughlin and Melanie Clark were set as the two adult chaperones, and Arthur-Miller said they had met as a team to discuss juniors and seniors who might potentially be a good fit for the trip. “Obviously, it’s an academic delegation, and I think that’s an opportunity for students, but also wanting to make sure that we’ve got great representation of West Liberty School, West Liberty, Iowa, the United States, all of that.” She said they narrowed the list down to 25 students and invited those students to fill out an application for the trip.

Board president Rebecca Vargas and her daughter Celeste visited China as part of a U.S. Youth Delegation over the summer. In addition to Beijing and Shanghai, they also visited Shijiazhuang, and Vargas said there are many mementos from Iowa there, including trees planted by former governors Terry Branstad and Tom Vilsack. Vargas said the trip had helped her daughter figure out she wanted to pursue a career path in global studies and added it would be a good opportunity for the students.

Arthur-Miller said that since five is considered a lucky number in Chinese culture, organizers hoped to have the program continue for five years. 

Board members voted to support the trip on a 4-0 vote. Jacob Burroughs was absent from the meeting.

Future educators program

The board approved a memorandum of understanding with the University of Iowa Teacher Education for Equity through Partnership.

Arthur-Miller explained that this is a continuation of grant the district received last year. This year, the high school has an Educators Rising Club, part of a national organization that creates a feeder program for students who want to become teachers. The program hopes to create a clear pathway to increase diversity and quality in the teaching profession.

Arthur-Miller said there are 14 students registered with the national Educators Rising program, and six who are job shadowing at the elementary school. There is an opportunity for students to attend a state conference at the University of Iowa, and a national conference in Orlando, Fla.

“Overall, I think it’s a really good thing,” said Arthur-Miller. “It gets some excitement into the profession, especially from our own students, so I’m excited to see where it goes.”

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