Armstrong Creek’s Geelong Lutheran College (GLC) has established a sister school relationship with the southern German school Gymnasium Trossingen following a trip earlier this year.
Four GLC staff members and 22 students studying German in Years 10 and 11 travelled to Trossingen in south-western Germany’s state Baden-Württemberg for a three-week cultural trip.
Head of College Jill Lange-Mohr said she was excited to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with Gymnasium Trossingen principal Herr Markus Eisele on the trip and form a long-term relationship.
“Our Lutheran traditions, steeped in German heritage, underpin our approach to teaching and learning within a richly diverse community,” she said.
“Partnering with a school in Germany is a great way to strengthen this connection and provide our German language students with an opportunity to immerse themselves in the language and culture.”
Ms Lange-Mohr said the new partnership would help engage more GLC students to learn German and that the trip exceeded the school’s “high expectations”.
“We cannot wait for the return visit of our friends to Geelong over Easter next year,” she said.
“Our students and staff were all welcomed with such warmth and kindness, and it was hard for all of us on the trip to say goodbye to our new friends in Trossingen.”
GLC students stayed with their host siblings and visited many cultural and historical sites during the trip earlier this year.
Gymnasium Trossingen students will travel to Geelong early next year, and the next group of GLC students will depart for Germany in 2025 as the schools alternate sending students each year.
