Attached photo: 2013 Sister City teacher scholarship winners Samantha Pultz, Dawn Shinn, Katherine Combs and Bernice Lowery were featured on a Japanese magazine cover following their visit to Hanamaki, Japan.
HOT SPRINGS -- The Hot Springs National Park Sister City Foundation will accept applications until Monday, March 17 for two teacher scholarships for summer travel to Hanamaki, Japan, Hot Springs’ sister city. Application information is available through the Sister City Program link under the Our Community tab on the City of Hot Springs’ home page, www.cityhs.net .
Teachers or school administrators currently employed in Garland County public schools are eligible for the scholarship program. The scholarship will fully fund travel costs for a seven-day trip to Hanamaki, Japan from June 4 – 11, 2014. The City of Hanamaki will provide home stay living arrangements along with tours and educational opportunities during the teachers’ visit.
The purpose of the travel scholarships is to provide Garland County public school educators the opportunity to interact with teachers and students in Hanamaki schools; to observe and learn about the culture of Hanamaki; and to incorporate information learned into their own classrooms and schools.
Katherine Combs, 2013 scholarship recipient and ¬¬¬¬¬elementary music teacher at Lake Hamilton School District, said of her trip: "Our Hanamaki friends understand that our children, and our grandchildren's children, will be using this same planet and we must, therefore, take care of it and teach our children to care for it and each other. They place emphasis on the community's well-being rather than the comfort of an individual, and they display visible respect for self, family, and elders. How many problems in our own schools and communities could be solved by enforcing these same values?"
The scholarships will be awarded in early April and are provided through grant sponsors along with individual private donations. For more information, email Donna Casparian, Foundation Secretary, donna@sistercityfoundation.com , or Janet Cheek, trip coordinator, sistercity@sbcglobal.net .