February 18, 2011 - Eastside Memorial Global Tech High School has been awarded a U.S. State Department grant through the National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) that will allow the school to send eight students to China this summer. The grant, administered by American Councils, will allow Global Tech to administer a study abroad program in collaboration with the International Education Fund (IEF), an Austin non-profit that offers transformative overseas learning experiences to traditionally under-represented high school and college students.

The project will send eight students and two teacher chaperones to Shanghai this summer for a six-week intensive language and cultural immersion experience. Shanghai program logistics will be handled by Learning Programs International (LPI), an experienced high school overseas exchange provider founded in Austin in 1989.  
 
In addition to four hours per day of intensive Mandarin language instruction at East China Normal University, students will live on campus, visit historically significant sites, participate in a range of cultural activities and community service projects, and experience a weekend home stay with a Chinese host family. Students will present a final language portfolio upon their return. The project is intended to help develop the Global Tech Chinese program, and advance the overall international educational mission of Global Tech.  
 
The grant will cover round-trip travel between Austin and Shanghai, tuition, room and board, materials and preparation, in-country support, cultural activities, pre-departure and re-entry orientations, a modest student stipend, medical insurance and visas for program participants.  
 
Global Tech students will also be organizing fund raisers to help them and their families meet personal expenditures not covered by the grant.