Three NLC students and an instructor are taking a little trip this Reading Week — they’re off to the Philippines as part of the Global Skills Opportunity program.
The four will attend a week-long study abroad program at the De La Salle University campus in Dasmariñas, Philippines. They will take part in guest lectures, cultural activities, and have the chance to experience an international post-secondary institution.
NLC instructor Tanya Clary will give two guest lectures while on the exchange. She says it’s a fantastic opportunity for the students to have an experience like this.
“It’s going to be amazing,” she says, “It’s not your typical tourist destination . . . the expense puts it out of reach for a lot of people, so the fact that we all get to go is pretty incredible.”
The students taking part are Chelsea Flowers and Leighton Wolf from Dawson Creek, and Kailee Smith from Fort St. John.
“I’m so excited,” says Chelsea, who is in the Associate of Arts – Health Sciences program. “I think being able to experience a different culture is really important. I’ll get to experience something that I’ve never seen before and be able to understand where a lot of my classmates come from as well, as a lot of them are from the Philippines.”
Leighton is currently in the Alaska Highway Consortium on Teacher Education, commonly known as AHCOTE, working on his Bachelor of Education, and Kailee is doing the Social Services Worker Diploma program.
This is the first of what NLC hopes will be many study-abroad trips going forward. The Global Skills Opportunity program is a branch of Colleges & Institutes Canada designed to globalize Canadian campuses, strengthen international networks, and increase intercultural competency.
