Cavalier Connections: A German Exchange Experience

On Saturday, February 17, after several months of planning and feats of logistical derring-do, ten ninth grade students, two administrators and one teacher from the Maria-Stern School in Augsburg, Germany landed at GSP to meet their Cavalier host families and embark upon a week-long visit to CCES.

The visit was spearheaded by Lower School German Teacher & BMW School Program Coordinator Angelika Hummel-Schmidt (also a Maria-Stern alumna) and US German teacher Dr. Bryan Kirby, both of whom had met with Maria-Stern administrators in Germany last March in hopes of finding a partner school that could provide input on CCES’s German program.

Our German friends and host families hit the ground running on Sunday, with the students staying with their families and our adult guests exposed to a mix of church services, a matinee performance at the Peace Center, and an early dinner at Tupelo Honey. Since Monday was a school holiday, the group spent a beautiful afternoon together at Rob and Betty Temple’s farm in Travelers Rest. And Buddy Deliberto was on the scene, making his signature homemade pizzas for lunch. 

Tuesday was the first day of school for our guests, and what better way to kick things off than with a breakfast provided by that icon of American Southern cuisine, Chick-fil-a -- which was a huge hit. From there, the students shadowed their host Cavaliers until Thursday – attending classes and assemblies, having lunch in the US dining room, sharing time in CavBlocks, and attending Chapel, where Maria-Stern administrators Christian Hörtrich, Christian Scholle, English teacher Marina Ortler, and the guest students performed a delightful rap of a modernized Apostle’s Creed in German.

While our student guests were experiencing campus life, administrators met with David Padilla and Angela Allen as well as all three Division Heads and/or Assistant Heads, getting both a “big picture” view of CCES as well as our day-to-day operations.

The whirlwind schedule also included a tour of BMW and an opportunity to volunteer at Harvest Hope with Director of Service and Experiential Learning Elizabeth Jarrett.

On Friday, our guests went on an overnight trip to Charleston. Sights included the beach at Isle of Palms, a short stop at the Yorktown, free roaming in Charleston and the International African American Museum.

While all of the planning, scheduling, and attention to detail was a massive undertaking, Angelika and Bryan felt that the visit was a huge success.

“The host families were incredible,” Angelika says. “They welcomed their guests with open arms and warmth. The English teacher Ms. Ortler stated that these were not just accommodations, they were homes - also for the adults, who stayed with another CCES family.”

For the students, it was a wonderful experience on both sides. “It was all one big community,” Angelika says. “Bryan and I were worried that the children-- because they are young ninth graders -- might get a little homesick, but at the end, all of them said they wanted to stay another week.”

Maybe someday soon CCES students will have the opportunity to visit their new friends in Germany, but for now, Angelika and Bryan are thrilled at the groundwork that has been laid. “Our main focus was relationship building so that we would have a collaborative partner for years to come, and I definitely think we accomplished that,” Angelika says.

Bryan and Angelika are so grateful for our community, and their openness and support for this vision. They would especially like to thank our host families:

Step one is done, and after a debriefing and a moment to catch their breaths, Bryan and Angelika will be looking ahead to what comes next. Stay tuned!