From Cluj, Romania to Columbia
By Sydney Kornegay

Seven teachers and eight students from Romania visited Columbia as part of a partnership between the World Affairs Council and AC Flora Key club. Pictured are the exchange students at A. C. Flora High School.

On Sunday, August 27, 2006, a group of students left their homes in Romania and came to Columbia. By Thursday, they could have passed for native South Carolinians.

"I am the Gamecocks' biggest fan!" one of the students exclaimed as he showed off his garnet and black T-shirt. "And I love the Flora Falcons!"

The student was one of eight teenagers and seven English teachers from Romania who visited Columbia as part of an English Immersion Camp. The program is collaboration between the World Affairs Council, Darla Moore School of business, and A.C. Flora High School, which has several Romanian sister schools.

The students spent a week living with host families and immersing themselves in American culture. They visited Riverbanks Zoo, toured downtown, and met with community leaders. For most of the students, however, the highlight of the week was the Tuesday tour of A.C. Flora.

Each group member was assigned a Flora student to shadow for the day. The students and teachers attended classes, learned about American high school and shared their own culture with Flora students.

Miruna Grecea, a senior from Romania, pointed out some of the differences in her high school.

"Our campuses aren't as spread out, and we don't have as many people in our classes," she said. "We can also choose to focus in one particular subject area such as the arts or sciences."

Despite their differences, however, the students share several common ties. Last fall, members of the Flora Key Club collected over 1,000 English books to send to high schools in Romania. These books were welcome additions to the school's libraries, which needed books for teenagers to practice their English. The following spring, Linda Smith, a teacher at A.C. Flora, visited the sister schools in Romania as part of the exchange program.

The partnership between Flora, The World Affairs Council and the schools in Romania has been an educational experience for everyone.

"It was a lot of fun just getting to know the students and hearing about their lifestyle," said Amy Betenbaugh, who escorted one of the Romanian students. "It really made me want to travel there."