News and information for staff members and the Madison community
Vol. I No. 7 - June 2, 2006
Between April 11 - May 6 this year, La Follette & West High Schools hosted 24 10th and 11th grade students from our partner high school in the Gottlieb Daimler Gymnasium in Stuttgart, Germany, which is located right across the street from the Daimler Benz Company.
The German-American Partnership Program (GAPP) is a school-to-school exchange under the auspices of the Federal Republic of Germany's Ministry of Culture and the U.S. Information Agency. The Madison School District has been active in this program since its inception in 1972. GAPP has developed into the most successful exchange program between the U.S. and Germany.
This success is a result of the program's pedagogical orientation. The heart of the exchange is the integration of students into the everyday life of their host families and into the classroom activities of their host schools.
In addition to family activities and attending classes at our schools, there were many special events for the whole group. They visited the Kalahari in Wisconsin Dells, they went to Bucks and Brewers games in Milwaukee and enjoyed a long weekend in Chicago.
Other events included parties, bowling, the annual UW Band Concert, a weekend outing at Devil's Lake State Park, a tour of Madison with a visit by State Senator Fred Risser at the State Capitol, a welcome cookout and goodbye potluck celebration at one of the parent's homes.
During their goodbye dinner celebration the German students shared how much they had been changed by the cultural understanding they gained, the connections they created with our community and the life long friendships they made. They especially noted that USA and Wisconsin are no longer foreign places, but a place that they have lived in and care for.
Between June 13 and July 10, 21 La Follette & West students who hosted the German guests during the exchange will make a return visit to Stuttgart, where they will attend school, live with host families, experience the World Cup which is to be held in Germany this year, and make various excursions including trips to Berlin, the highest church steeple in the world in the city of Ulm and a visit to Neu Schwannstein Castle in southeast Germany, the one that the Disney World logo is based on.
German teachers Michael Tollefson (La Follette), Wendy Weber (West) and Sean Storch (La Follette) will accompany the students as chaperones.
Gottlieb Daimler Gymnasium German Exchange students enjoyed their tour of Downtown Madison in mid-April. They are half of a school-to-school exchange program involving La Follette and West High Schools.
Last Updated: Mon Jul 17 07:54:45 2006
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