A Delco dozen become student ambassadors to Australia
A dozen students from Delaware County are hopping on a plane to the “land down under” through the People to People International program this month.
The local students will team up with students from North Carolina and Michigan in Australia to visit Sydney, Darwin, Canberra and Cairns from June 28 to July 14.
While in Australia, students will keep journals as they meet with members of the Australian parliament, participate in a surprise service project, meet and learn about the Aborigines, go to the Sydney opera house and aquarium and explore the Great Barrier Reef.
People to People delegation leader for the trip Cheryl Green has prepared students through about six months of meetings to become youth ambassadors for the United States.
“Students get an opportunity to see the world, see their differences and likenesses, and to accept and work with people who are not like them,” Green said.
Green, of Wyncote, is a chaperone on the trip and a retired vice principal and teacher in the School District of Philadelphia.
People to People selects students for the trips who exhibit leadership and maturity in the interview process. Many students are involved with extracurricular activities and are honor roll members.
To participate, students are nominated for their leadership skills by teachers, educators, church members, family friends or alumni. The students then attend an informational meeting about the trip, and if they choose to continue, undergo an interview process that determines whether they will be a part of the program.
After being selected, students learn about their destination through geographical, historical and cultural studies.
“Students are taught quite a bit about the place they are going, and the country’s cultural etiquette, so that when they get there, they know what to expect,” Green said. Students are also given assignments about civic awareness in the United States and participate in a service project prior to the trip.
The Australia-bound group served a chicken, rice and vegetable dinner to over 240 people at the Life Center, a social service and welfare organization in Upper Darby.
Students attending the trip are from Upper Darby High School, Bayard Rustin High School, Archbishop John Carroll High School, Haverford High School, Marple Newtown High School, Strath Haven High School, Prep Charter High School and Delaware County Christian School.
“These trips are very interesting, and the kids return so much more mature and open than when we started. It’s surprising how much they bond,” Green said.
The nonprofit People to People program also provides opportunities for students to take trips to Europe, China, Japan and New Zealand.
The program, which was founded by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, aims to promote communication of international ideas between individuals from different countries.
According to the parents of the Delco People-to-People students, the Australia trip costs approximately $7,500 per student. The students and their families are responsible for the cost of the trip.
The young ambassadors meet that financial obligation by fundraising through beef-and-beer parties and candy sales, soliciting family members for donations, or working part-time jobs.
Christopher Navickas, 17, of Broomall worked hard at his part time job as a server at Valentino’s to fund half of his Australia trip. This is the Archbishop John Carroll junior’s first People to People trip, but not his first time out of the country. Last year, he took a trip to Europe with his school and caught the travel bug.
Navickas said he shares his mom’s desire to go to Australia, so he jumped at the chance to travel with People to People this year. He’s looking forward to experiencing the Aboriginal culture, meeting native Australians and snorkeling at the barrier reef.
“I think it will be really life changing,” he said.
Navickas is an honor roll student who plays football, basketball, indoor track and serves as a student ambassador, who provides tours to prospective students. He said he is not sure who nominated him for the People to People program, but he is grateful and honored to be a part of the trip.
“It was touching that someone nominated me to be involved with People to People. I don’t know when I will have another opportunity to do this again,” he said.
His mother, Christine Navickas, who was involved with the service-project committee, said she is happy to see him seize the opportunity to be a student ambassador.
“I hope it continues his interest in worldwide travel and widens his desire to experience other cultures,” she said.
The local students will team up with students from North Carolina and Michigan in Australia to visit Sydney, Darwin, Canberra and Cairns from June 28 to July 14.
While in Australia, students will keep journals as they meet with members of the Australian parliament, participate in a surprise service project, meet and learn about the Aborigines, go to the Sydney opera house and aquarium and explore the Great Barrier Reef.
People to People delegation leader for the trip Cheryl Green has prepared students through about six months of meetings to become youth ambassadors for the United States.
“Students get an opportunity to see the world, see their differences and likenesses, and to accept and work with people who are not like them,” Green said.
Green, of Wyncote, is a chaperone on the trip and a retired vice principal and teacher in the School District of Philadelphia.
People to People selects students for the trips who exhibit leadership and maturity in the interview process. Many students are involved with extracurricular activities and are honor roll members.
To participate, students are nominated for their leadership skills by teachers, educators, church members, family friends or alumni. The students then attend an informational meeting about the trip, and if they choose to continue, undergo an interview process that determines whether they will be a part of the program.
After being selected, students learn about their destination through geographical, historical and cultural studies.
“Students are taught quite a bit about the place they are going, and the country’s cultural etiquette, so that when they get there, they know what to expect,” Green said. Students are also given assignments about civic awareness in the United States and participate in a service project prior to the trip.
The Australia-bound group served a chicken, rice and vegetable dinner to over 240 people at the Life Center, a social service and welfare organization in Upper Darby.
Students attending the trip are from Upper Darby High School, Bayard Rustin High School, Archbishop John Carroll High School, Haverford High School, Marple Newtown High School, Strath Haven High School, Prep Charter High School and Delaware County Christian School.
“These trips are very interesting, and the kids return so much more mature and open than when we started. It’s surprising how much they bond,” Green said.
The nonprofit People to People program also provides opportunities for students to take trips to Europe, China, Japan and New Zealand.
The program, which was founded by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, aims to promote communication of international ideas between individuals from different countries.
According to the parents of the Delco People-to-People students, the Australia trip costs approximately $7,500 per student. The students and their families are responsible for the cost of the trip.
The young ambassadors meet that financial obligation by fundraising through beef-and-beer parties and candy sales, soliciting family members for donations, or working part-time jobs.
Christopher Navickas, 17, of Broomall worked hard at his part time job as a server at Valentino’s to fund half of his Australia trip. This is the Archbishop John Carroll junior’s first People to People trip, but not his first time out of the country. Last year, he took a trip to Europe with his school and caught the travel bug.
Navickas said he shares his mom’s desire to go to Australia, so he jumped at the chance to travel with People to People this year. He’s looking forward to experiencing the Aboriginal culture, meeting native Australians and snorkeling at the barrier reef.
“I think it will be really life changing,” he said.
Navickas is an honor roll student who plays football, basketball, indoor track and serves as a student ambassador, who provides tours to prospective students. He said he is not sure who nominated him for the People to People program, but he is grateful and honored to be a part of the trip.
“It was touching that someone nominated me to be involved with People to People. I don’t know when I will have another opportunity to do this again,” he said.
His mother, Christine Navickas, who was involved with the service-project committee, said she is happy to see him seize the opportunity to be a student ambassador.
“I hope it continues his interest in worldwide travel and widens his desire to experience other cultures,” she said.
