Discover the benefit behind student exchange

REPRESENTATIVES behind World Education Program Australia will soon be in town to teach the community about the benefits of the organisation’s exchange student initiative.

As part of WEP’s statewide roadshow, the non-profit’s team will visit Ballarat next week with an information session on Thursday followed by a community day the following Saturday.

Marketing and sales manager Donna Lack said the purpose of their visit is to inform people in the Ballarat region on what the organisation does.

“We arrange high school exchange programs for students in Australia and from around the world,” she said.

“We currently have some exchange students living in Ballarat and the surrounding areas with host families and going to schools.

“The events are so our host families and students can get together but also so the community can get introduced to the idea of exchange and get to know students, and hopefully be inspired to welcome their own student into their home.”

The information session will run from 6.30pm on Thursday 20 March at the Sebastopol Library, where attendees can hear about what the program offers, what locations are available for students to visit, and how to participate in the exchange program.

People will also hear from Australian students who took part in the program.

The community day will then be held at Wendouree Neighbourhood Centre on Saturday 22 March from 1pm to 4pm.

There, attendees can meet exchange students visiting from overseas as well as the WEP team while participating in games and activities.

Ballarat is stop one on WEP’s roadshow, which will also include Bendigo, Wodonga, Gippsland and Warrnambool.

Initially a global movement, WEP was established in Europe in 1988 before being introduced in Australia in 2001.