The journey begins for 4 World Link staff and 14 coordinators as we travel tomorrow to Chicago for two days of planning and discussions about the World Link FLEX and YES Programs for next year. Then off to Georgia and Turkey on the second phase of our annual training. We will be traveling to Georgia (FLEX Country) to meet with alumni, immerse ourselves in Georgian culture, visit schools that our students come from and interact with the people that are responsible for implementing the recruitment and alumni portions of the program. From our vantage point overlooking Tbilisi (photo above) we will talk with our former students about what program elements that they experienced in the USA had an impact on their careers and on the communities and country. After four days of Georgian cultural immersion, we are off on a short flight to Istanbul, Turkey (YES Country) for three days of immersion and interaction in the Turkish culture. We will be positioned in Sultanahmet on the European side that was once the end of the Roman Empire and later the home of the Ottoman Empire. What better place to experience how cultures with their religious influences have managed to coexist over more than 1,000 years. So, our journey begins in Chicago, transiting through Munich on the way to Georgia and Turkey. Stay tuned as we will all be posting photos, observations, interactions with the culture and our alumni, and maybe a dance video or two. Bon voyage! (Curt Stutzman, President - World Link)
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Author4 World Link National Staff and 14 Coordinators are taking their Annual Staff Meeting abroad for a Cross-Cultural Diversity Immersion Workshop in the Republic of Georgia and Turkey. Archives |