First Canada-Ukraine student exchange deemed a success (09/10/06)

First Canada-Ukraine student exchange deemed a success

by Adriana Luhovy

MONTREAL - The first major Canada Ukraine high school student exchange program in Quebec between Royal West Academy (RWA) in Montreal and Kyiv Mohyla Collegium in Kyiv has drawn to a successful close this summer. The program took two years to be organized with a classroom of students from Ukraine first visiting Canada.

Among the major highlights for the Kyiv group was the signing of the golden book of honor at the Montreal City Hall last fall, organized on behalf of Montreal Mayor Gerald Tremblay by Oksana Kaluzny, attorney and councilor for LaSalle, and a visit to Ottawa and Quebec City.

The group's two-week stay in Canada was entirely financed by fund-raising organized by the RWA parents and students with support generated from the Termerty Foundation in Toronto, the Canada Ukraine Foundation in Winnipeg, the Ukrainian Professional and Business Association of Calgary, the Ukrainian National Association and numerous Montreal Ukrainian organizations.

Regarding the exchange, Mary Reynolds, principal of Royal West Academy, stated, "this international students exchange ... has been an unqualified success." She added, "Exchanges such as this one certainly serve the purposes of education vastly more than sitting in a classroom learning about the world from a book."

This summer, students and teachers of RWA visited Ukraine for the first time with a two-week program organized by Kyiv Mohyla Collegium, reciprocating the hospitality given by the Canadian families at Royal West Academy.

"Had it not been for this wonderful exchange, I doubt these gifted students would have ever considered visiting Ukraine," stated RWA teacher Victor Zwetkow. It has undoubtedly, opened up in them a whole new awareness of Europe."

In Kyiv the students visited major historic sites, including the Chornobyl Museum. Side trips to Chernihiv and to Lviv were organized, the latter being financed with a much-appreciated grant given to the collegium by Mykola Plawiuk of the Olzhych Foundation in Ukraine.

To prepare themselves for traveling to Ukraine, the RWA students took Ukrainian language lessons offered at the school and prior to leaving for Kyiv organized a Ukraine Cultural Day in which all exchange students organized special presentations on some aspect of Ukrainian culture, history and politics that they themselves had to research.

A book display on Ukraine and Ukrainians, a Montreal Ukrainian dance group performance headed by Bohdan Klemchuk, singing by talented Olha Zelman and a Ukrainian food buffet all added to the student and parent awareness of Ukrainian culture.

RWA teacher Sidney Westlake has spearheaded a student-exchange program for over 10 years, each time choosing a different country for her classroom. She was assisted by teachers Doug Floen and Mr. Zwetkow, and former RWA parent Zorianna Hrycenko-Luhova.

Regarding the recent exchange to Ukraine Mrs. Westlake remarked, "a good time was had by all, the people are so welcoming, and the hospitality was overwhelming! What an opportunity to see a country that will soon be developed beyond recognition."

The program coordinator in Kyiv was Tymor Oratovskyy, vice-principal of Kyiv Mohyla Collegium, assisted by teachers Olena Bohdanova and Olena Tarasova.

Exchange organizers said experiencing each other's culture and being able to stay two weeks in each other's homes has created a bond and friendships for the 50 students and teachers of Canada and Ukraine that will last forever.

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