Many people dream of traveling to France, but few have been so eager as to leave two days after graduation. From June 10-25 a group of Eagles visited Lille, France to immerse themselves in the French language and culture. During their stay, Eagles ventured outside of Lille to Paris and even traveled outside the country to Bruges, a medieval town in Belgium.

   “There were so many amazing parts,” junior Oro Allen-Slattery said. “We went to Belgium for a day and it was really fun. I also got to go to a French amusement park for a day called Asterix. I loved it.”

   French teacher Dawn Young has been hosting trips like these throughout her 28 years of teaching. She recently gained the opportunity for East to participate in an exchange program with a school in Lille called Saint Adrien. 

   “For over a decade, East Meck has been associated with Terre des Langues – the group that we worked with that sent us to France,” Young said. “We hosted Saint Adrien in February of 2023 with the understanding that our school would travel there in 2024.”

   East does not have a good break during the school year for Eagles to attend classes in France. Instead they get to go during the summer and stay with host families. Four East students even got to stay with the same people they hosted a year prior. 

   “My host family was really amazing,” Allen-Slattery said. “I originally hosted their daughter, Elsa, two years ago with the original exchange program and I was able to stay with her family and see her again, which was amazing.”

   Of course like any good field trip, education was at the heart of the visit. While anyone was free to register, special attention was given to students taking French classes. Allen-Slattery had just completed French lll when she took the trip and talked about her experience being surrounded with the language.

   “It was really weird because I didn’t realize I speak slowly until I went over there and they asked me why I speak so slow,” Allen-Slattery said. “French is a very fast language, so it’s honestly hard to keep up with. But the experience was truly incredible to be surrounded by that different language and to learn so much more.”

   Currently the plan is for these exchange events to happen every other year. East will host students from San Adrien in 2026 and a new generation of Eagles will have the chance to travel to France in June of that same year.

   “I am very excited,” Young said. “I think we had a really, really great first time out to complete the exchange with Saint Adrien, and I look forward to more trips in the future.”