Project Updates
March 18th - March 22nd
Phase III Trip to Russia
Just two weeks ago, a delegation of six students from The Wellington School departed from the states and flew across the world to reunite with their friends and business partners. Accompanied by two Wellington staff members, our own Executive Director, Mark Poeppelman, and Junior Achievement of Central Ohio's Mike Fulwider, the students traveled to Moscow and Surgut to visit Lingua students, work on their business project and explore Russia. During their time there, they met many different Lingua students outside of their project, and were immersed in Russian culture by staying with local host families. When they weren't working hard developing their website and app for finding students internship opportunities, they got to explore the two great cities of Moscow and Surgut. They visited Red Square and Victory Park, as well as a large oil rig. They enjoyed great food, and weather that was not as bitter cold as one would expect from Siberia in March, with temperatures consistently just above freezing. The students were in the spotlight multiple times, explaining to different media outlets the importance of the project they are involved in, and how they are creating international friendships through this collaborative effort. They also got to visit the United States Embassy in Moscow to share their project with embassy officials there. We are so thankful to all of our gracious host families, who made this experience as impactful as it could be! We would also like to thank Junior Achievement of Central Ohio, Lingua and Wellington for making this program so great. We are currently working on getting written feedback from students and other participants to share more in depth accounts of the experience, so be on the lookout for those in the coming weeks!
January 3rd - January 10th
Phase II: Now Complete
The past few weeks have been incredibly busy for the International Business Collaborative program. Students have continued with online collaborative sessions, and have begun to work through Junior Achievement of Central Ohio (JACO) curriculum on their business project. Students have been divided into a few different subgroups, in regards to the development of their business. These groups consist of Management and Leadership, Marketing, Finance, Supply Chain and Sales.
On January 3rd, a delegation of ten students and two educators from Lingua schools in Moscow and Surgut, Russia arrived in Columbus. Everyone involved in the project was very excited to finally have the chance to meet face to face. The Russian delegation spent about a week in Columbus, heading home on the 10th. During their time here, students were welcomed into the homes of Wellington students who are also participating in the program, allowing for authentic bonds to form between peers. We greatly appreciate the kindness of our host families from The Wellington School: Aaron Seamon and Jessica Winter; Kirk and Anne Albers; Robert and Laurie Jacques; Anthony and Carolina Botta-Lopez; Kurt and Shelly Unverferth; and Keith Sprochi and Laurie Stevenson. Without the generosity of our hosts, our international guests' experiences here would not be as authentic and enjoyable as they were. Additionally, we would like to thank Yana Belan, Board of Trustees Member, for programming and implementation assistance, as well as hosting our Russian educators. Great feedback was given by all parties on relationship building and cultural exchange. Students reported having misconceptions about each other broken in the most positive ways.
During the week the delegation was in Columbus, students were able to dig even deeper into the development of the business project. They participated in several work days and worked through modules from JACO together. They learned specifically how to perform the SWAT analysis on their potential business ventures, assessing strengths and weaknesses. Originally, students had proposed two business propositions. The first was the creation of a Smart Textiles clothing line, with clothes to keep you extra warm using technology that would reflect heat onto the body. The second option was to create an app that would allow students to search for positions open at part time jobs or internships. Any business or organization looking to hire students part-time or for internships could post job listings on the application, providing students with an alternate to relying on their parents' networks to connect with opportunities for these experiences. Students ultimately decided on the app avenue, with the thought that it would be a better venture to manage internationally. Students put on an evening open to the public at which they presented an update on the project so far, and shared a bit about their schools and cities. Russian students prepared some of their favorite dishes from home to share with all those in attendance.
In addition to gaining a lot of headway on the business project, students were able to spend a significant amount of time socializing and getting to know each other. From hanging out with their host families, to visiting the North Market together, students very much enjoyed getting to know their international counterparts. The group visited the Economic and Community Development Institute and the Idea Foundry. Students also participated in community service together at the Hilltop YMCA, where they painted outdoor benches to be used at summer camps in the coming season. Students also enjoyed a pool and pizza party.
All parties involved are incredibly excited for the collaboration to continue between these two excellent schools. In March, a delegation of US students and educators will travel to Russia to meet with students in Surgut and Moscow to share in their culture and continue work on the business project. We cannot wait to see where the next few months takes this program, and would like to express our sincere gratitude to all those who have helped make this happen!
Be on the lookout for more updates soon!
On January 3rd, a delegation of ten students and two educators from Lingua schools in Moscow and Surgut, Russia arrived in Columbus. Everyone involved in the project was very excited to finally have the chance to meet face to face. The Russian delegation spent about a week in Columbus, heading home on the 10th. During their time here, students were welcomed into the homes of Wellington students who are also participating in the program, allowing for authentic bonds to form between peers. We greatly appreciate the kindness of our host families from The Wellington School: Aaron Seamon and Jessica Winter; Kirk and Anne Albers; Robert and Laurie Jacques; Anthony and Carolina Botta-Lopez; Kurt and Shelly Unverferth; and Keith Sprochi and Laurie Stevenson. Without the generosity of our hosts, our international guests' experiences here would not be as authentic and enjoyable as they were. Additionally, we would like to thank Yana Belan, Board of Trustees Member, for programming and implementation assistance, as well as hosting our Russian educators. Great feedback was given by all parties on relationship building and cultural exchange. Students reported having misconceptions about each other broken in the most positive ways.
During the week the delegation was in Columbus, students were able to dig even deeper into the development of the business project. They participated in several work days and worked through modules from JACO together. They learned specifically how to perform the SWAT analysis on their potential business ventures, assessing strengths and weaknesses. Originally, students had proposed two business propositions. The first was the creation of a Smart Textiles clothing line, with clothes to keep you extra warm using technology that would reflect heat onto the body. The second option was to create an app that would allow students to search for positions open at part time jobs or internships. Any business or organization looking to hire students part-time or for internships could post job listings on the application, providing students with an alternate to relying on their parents' networks to connect with opportunities for these experiences. Students ultimately decided on the app avenue, with the thought that it would be a better venture to manage internationally. Students put on an evening open to the public at which they presented an update on the project so far, and shared a bit about their schools and cities. Russian students prepared some of their favorite dishes from home to share with all those in attendance.
In addition to gaining a lot of headway on the business project, students were able to spend a significant amount of time socializing and getting to know each other. From hanging out with their host families, to visiting the North Market together, students very much enjoyed getting to know their international counterparts. The group visited the Economic and Community Development Institute and the Idea Foundry. Students also participated in community service together at the Hilltop YMCA, where they painted outdoor benches to be used at summer camps in the coming season. Students also enjoyed a pool and pizza party.
All parties involved are incredibly excited for the collaboration to continue between these two excellent schools. In March, a delegation of US students and educators will travel to Russia to meet with students in Surgut and Moscow to share in their culture and continue work on the business project. We cannot wait to see where the next few months takes this program, and would like to express our sincere gratitude to all those who have helped make this happen!
Be on the lookout for more updates soon!
November 27th - December 3rdOver this week, phase one of our collaborative project was officially completed. This phase consisted of three educators from our Russian partner, Lingua, coming to Columbus to meet their partners, The Wellington School and Junior Achievement of Central Ohio (JACO). Liudmila Vitalyevna and her daughters, Raisa Yuryevna and Liubov Yuryevna, are General Director, CEO and Deputy Director of Lingua, respectively. The bulk of their time here was spent meeting with Wellington and JACO to make plans for the rest of the program, as well as discuss how they have been running their classroom meetings in Russia, and see how it has been done so far here in Columbus. Everyone was very excited to meet in person, as opposed to conversing through video chats, as usual. Our three visitors also attended several development meetings with other organizations in Columbus, including The PAST Foundation and COSI, to discuss future programming. During phase two of our program, the delegation of Russian students will be visiting COSI. In addition to business, our visitors did get to enjoy Columbus while on their trip. They went shopping at the Polaris Fashion Place and really enjoyed attending a belated Thanksgiving dinner, generously hosted by Marian Harris. Liudmila very much enjoyed getting to show her daughters the city in which she decided to found Lingua. CIP would like to thank Sally Wilson, Jeff and Elizabeth Sammons, Marian Harris and the Hyatt Place at Grandview Yard for hositng our guests while they were here. Be on the lookout for more updates as we move forward with this exciting project! |
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Wednesday, November 9th, 2016
On Wednesday November 9th, the participating students met at their regular class time. There are 38 students between the two schools. This first session was intentionally kept informal, as the students got accustomed to communicating with each other via Skype. Over half an hour was spent discussing various stereotypes that Americans and Russians have of each other. It was an opportunity to discuss openly about each others cultures, and to see each other as human beings that have a lot in common. The Russian students were particularly interested in the band 21 Pilots as well as the museum exhibitions and theatre performances that Columbus has to offer. Next week's session will feature a guest lecturer from the Ohio State University, Fisher College of Business. The students will then begin vetting business ideas.
Check out these videos from some of our Russian participants!
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Wednesday, October 12th, 2016 Today was the kick-off of our program! At 8 am in Columbus, 3 pm in Moscow and 5 pm in Surgut, students from all three cities were introduced in our first Skype conversation! Together, we went over the overview of the program, learned about each others' cities and schools, and discussed our goals and hopes for the outcome of this program. Additionally, we heard from Mike Fulwider from Junior Achievement of Central Ohio (JACO) about how they operate and how they will be assisting our program students through this project. It was so exciting to finally get things started and see and speak to our counterparts from across the globe. |
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