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| Consul General Powell (center) and Lord Mayor Lohse (left) with the WoA group of the Pestalozzischule |
June 17, 2009. On June 17th, 2009, Consul General Jo Ellen Powell and Ludwigshafen’s Lord Mayor Dr. Eva Lohse greeted the students of the Pestalozzihauptschule who have been selected to participate in the U.S. Embassy’s next Windows on America (WoA) exchange program in August. Addressing the students, their parents and siblings, Consul General Powell praised the essays by the students on their personal “Window on America” and said she was very pleased that the students would start their trip in her home town of Washington, D.C. She also conveyed the best wishes from the sponsors of this trip, the Robert Bosch Foundation, Fresenius and The English Theatre Frankfurt.
Lord Mayor Lohse thanked the U.S. Mission to Germany for giving kids from Ludwigshafen the opportunity to experience America first hand and emphasized that the Pestalozzischule with its diverse student body and active engagement in the field of intercultural understanding was the best choice for this program. In September 2008, the Pestalozzischule had received the honor of being “School without Racism” as the first Hauptschule in Rhineland-Palatinate and the first school in Ludwigshafen. Eighty-five percent of its students have an immigrant background and come from 30 different countries. It will be the first school from Rhineland-Palatinate that participates in the Windows on America program.
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 while Vice Consul Ryan Russell from the U.S. Consulate General in Frankfurt explained the Electronic System of Travel Authorization (ESTA) and the visa regulations.
The event was covered by local media. Photo Gallery
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.
