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Contact: Jenni Brockman Phone: 804-443-3357 Fax: 804-443-6781 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tappahannock (February 17, 2003) - They may not own kangaroos or live near Crocodile Dundee, but that hasn't stopped three students from St. Margaret's School in Berwick, Australia, from bringing a little bit of Down Under to Tappahannock as they learn about life in the US. "I wanted to meet new people, see new places, and experience a different educational system," said Year 10 student Brittani Damiani. 
Photo left:
Brittani Damiani, Allie Ross and Sam Gash bring perspectives from Australia to students and faculty at St. Margaret's School in Tappahannock. They represent a sister school in a Melbourne suburb with which SMS has an exchange program.
She and classmate Alexandra Ross are spending 10 weeks living in the dorms and taking classes as part of the student exchange program facilitated by the Queen Margaret of Scotland Girls' School Association. Samantha Gash is assisting teachers and working in administrative offices during a "gap" internship year between her November graduation and performing arts studies at Monash University. All three are standouts at the 650-student, pre-kindergarten through 12th grade day school in the suburbs of Melbourne. Damiani enjoys history, art and jazz dancing. She hopes to study advertising or psychology at university. Ross plays saxophone, likes sports and plans to pursue a career in drama or outdoor recreation. Gash participated in drama, debating, singing and cross-country. She competed with students from across her nation to earn a spot at Monash. The Australians quickly learned that they know more about American culture than most Americans know about Australia. (Well-meaning US students really did ask them about pet kangaroos and celebrity neighbors.) They've found some things are different here. Both sophomores are taking American Literature, a course not offered back home. At their school, classes are grouped by grade rather than by ability. They aren't allowed to wear makeup or jewelry with their uniforms, but they typically have less homework and more relaxed deadlines. Recent snowstorms have amazed them--right now, it's the end of the summer and the beginning of the school year in the Southern Hemisphere. Other things are much the same. Students who break the rules in Berwick receive "infringements" that can result in detention. There's a spirit competition between the three houses of the school that's much like SMS Tappahannock's traditional intramural and academic contests between Blue and Grey teams. And, said Gash, "It's really easy to make friends here." Both St. Margaret's Schools are members of the Queen Margaret of Scotland Girls' School Association, a group of 11 schools in 7 countries named for the Scottish saint. The QMSGSA coordinates student and faculty exchanges, joint choral concerts, and semi-annual meetings for school heads, with the goals of promoting a common heritage and fostering international relations. |
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