Selected Events Jul-Dec 2009
Stuttgart’s BIL-Schule Opens a Window on America
December 16, 2009
Consul General with BIL students
Consul General Edward M. Alford held a town hall meeting at the BIL-Schule in Stuttgart to introduce the U.S. Mission to Germany’s “Windows on America” (WoA) program to teachers, students, their parents and siblings on December 16th. Students of the 10th grade of the school are called on to write essays about their personal “Window on America,” of which the best ten will be selected for participation in a WoA program in April 2010. Mr. Alford also thanked the sponsors of this trip, >the Robert Bosch Foundation, Fresenius, and The English Theatre Frankfurt, for their generous financial support. >Maja Lutterbei from the exchange organization Experiment e.V. that organizes the trip in cooperation with World Learning in America briefed the students about the detailed program in America while WoA Alumnae Mediha Dauti and Florentina Nimanaj entertained the audience with anecdotes about their recent WoA trip. Afterwards, Consul General Alford and Public Affairs Officer Jeanine Collins engaged in a lively discussion with teachers, students and parents about American culture and customs.
The BIL-Schule is a combined Realschule and Gymnasium and has currently 264 students. 85% of them have a migration background, most of them Turkish. The school was founded in 2004 with the objective of integrating students with migration background better into the German society.
Windows on America (WoA) is an initiative by U.S. Mission Germany to provide opportunities for minority students who have been traditionally underrepresented in exchange programs between the two nations to travel to the United States. It is financed by German and American companies as well as foundations and private sponsors. Windows on America provides students with a 10 day trip to American cities such as Washington, D.C., New York City, New York and Des Moines, Iowa. While on this trip the students are exposed to all aspects of American culture, school, and life by visiting American museums and monuments, touring American high schools, and participating in home stays with American families. Students meet with representatives of different American institutions including local government, school administration, religious institutions, and community groups. This public-private partnership initiative seeks to promote understanding, encourage lasting relationships, and address misperceptions about the U.S. among the next generation of German youth.