Every few weeks, a group of Woodgrove students gather in the library to talk with students from another school, through the video calling website Zoom. The students, most of whom are part of Woodgrove’s Global Ambassadors club or International Relations class, take part in meetings with a high school in Mykolaiv (pronounced mic-oh-live), Ukraine.
This is the first year Woodgrove has held video meetings with the Ukrainian students. However the connection between the two schools goes back a few years, when Ukrainian educational activist Anna Novasad, who was roommates with a friend of Global Ambassadors sponsor Mr. Matthew Talboo, spoke at Woodgrove.
The schools are connected through UActive, a program funded by the organizations savED, which was co-founded by Novasad, and Spirit of America, with the goal of addressing the impact of the Russo-Ukrainian war on Ukrainian students and their education.
During a meeting on December 5th, Woodgrove students pitched fundraising ideas to the Ukrainian students, with the goal to raise money for Ukrainians in need because of the country’s ongoing war with Russia. “[The meetings] have been very well organized from the Ukrainian side. The Ukrainians tell us what they want us to do and we simply provide the information,” said Talboo.
Even though they are talking to each other from over 5,000 miles away, it is evident that the Woodgrove and Ukrainian students are making deep and lasting connections with each other. At the end of one meeting, the students bonded over a shared love for Metallica, with Ukrainian students eagerly typing their favorite songs into the chat.
“We’ve learned so many cultural things on the basis of just interacting with people,” said Talboo. “They’re interested in the same things and music and friendships.”
“We might forget it because all we see is Woodgrove, but we really should be grateful for the school community we have here. The amazing students and that spirit of community we have, we should be grateful for it,” added Talboo.
Senior Andrew McCarron said his experience interacting with the Ukrainian students has changed his perspective. “It’s easy to get so used to the kind of environment and community we live in to the point where it’s hard to fully comprehend what it’s like to live outside of our little bubble,” said McCarron.
It seems that these intercontinental conversations will be continuing to happen well into the future, as the latest meeting ended with both the Ukrainian and Woodgrove students promising to continue their productive partnership for years to come.
