Today is the first weekday of summer break for thousands of local students. More than 50 West Seattle High School students will spend a large part of their summer studying outside the U.S. The report and photo are from WSHS teacher Meghan Schumacher, who is also Volunteer Site Coordinator for the program in which they’re participating:

This summer, 51 students from West Seattle High School will be studying abroad for 3-4 weeks with CIEE, the Council for International Educational Exchange, a nonprofit organization which coordinates high school and college international exchanges.

86% of these students are traveling with some kind of scholarship, either merit or need-based. West Seattle High School is a Global Navigator School with CIEE, which means that students at the school automatically qualify for at least $25,000 in scholarships toward program fees. This year, WSHS students earned $56,310 in scholarships. Students at West Seattle High have earned over $300,000 in scholarships since 2018, with 196 total students going abroad.

Students are participating in two types of programs. Language and Culture Programs involve studying French, Spanish, Italian, or Arabic in France, Spain, Argentina, Italy, or Morocco. Topic programs include art, creative writing, government, wildlife conservation, leadership and service, or engineering and innovation in Scotland, England, Portugal, Germany, Costa Rica, Botswana, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Ghana, Australia, the Netherlands, or Czechia.

We very much appreciate the support of the teachers, parents and community members of these students, encouraging them to apply and to put their best foot forward. These students and their support networks are helping to make West Seattle a more globally minded community.