Wallingford Students Excited about JA China Project

The reception from parents and students to the partnership between Junior Achievement and the school system for a student exchange program with Chinese students has been overwhelming, according to Lou Golden, president of JA of Southwest New England.

"We are delighted with the tremendous turnout of parents and students" at a recent informational meeting on the project, he told the Board of Education this week. "We thought if we had 12 students, it would be an okay night, but we had over 40."

Ultimately there will be 20 students chosen to participate in the project, which will include Chinese students coming to Connecticut this summer and Wallingford students traveling to China next year.

Activities the students will take part in this summer include trips to the New York Stock Exchange, ESPN and Lake Compounce, Golden said.

"It's starting to shape up," he said, with speakers lined up and major corporations interested in getting involved.

Plans call for the students — both from Wallingford and China — to collaborate on the creation of a company, Golden said.

"They will plant the seeds of the business when they get together this summer," he said. 

"We expect them to get together several times a month via Skype during the school year," Supt. of Schools Sal Menzo said. 

The students also will stay connected using social media, Golden said.

Because of the enthusiastic response on the part of parents, they are also looking into including them in the China trip next summer, Menzo said. 

"It might be exciting to get the parents to join with the [Chinese] parents," he said. "The primary goal is for the students but this might open up other opportunities and experiences."

There will be a rigorous application process, Golden said, and students selected will have to maintain a certain grade point average.

"I want to say thank you to Junior Achievement for using us for this pilot program," Board of Education Chairman Roxane McKay said. "We are all very excited about it."