While most Normal West students will spend next year in familiar hallways, current freshman Matilda Estabrook will spend hers nearly 6,000 miles away in Asahikawa, Japan.
The Normal West freshman was selected to participate in the Sister Cities exchange program, which allows students from Bloomington-Normal to study abroad in Asahikawa for a year.
The program is supported by chairman and Normal West teacher Jeffery Kroesch.
Estabrook said the program had always existed in the background for her but was never something she seriously considered.
That changed after she participated in a 10-day trip to Japan a few years ago.
“I did that 10-day trip there, which was really fun. It’s called a junior ambassador trip, and you stay with the host family there,” Estabrook said.
“You don’t go with your family, but there’s other kids that they also select, so we had five people go, and we all had host families and had chaperones there.”
The experience inspired her to apply for the year-long exchange program.
To be selected, Estabrook went through several steps in the application process.
She first completed an application and later participated in a n interview with committee members. She also said applicants may be asked to submit additional essays to strengthen their chances.
Having already visited Japan once may help them adjust to living there for an entire school year.
To prepare for the trip, Estabrook has been taking private Japanese lessons.
“Once I got the program, they paid for in-person lessons,” Estabrook said. “Twice a week, I have two-hour lessons with a private tutor.”
During the school year, Estabrook will live in Asahikkawa with multiple host families.
“I’ll have three host families when I’m there,” Estabrook said. “My old host family might host me again, because we’ve been talking about it.”
Studying abroad also comes with opportunities for personal growth.
“I’m mainly excited for the growth because I feel like I’m gonna become a lot more independent,”
Estabrook said. “I’m going to go through so many experiences like doing speeches in front of so many people that I think I’m going to grow so much and become a much better person.”
Although going to school across the globe and learning a new language can be intimidating for many students, Estabrook said those challenges are some things she is most excited about.
She is also looking forward to experiencing Japan’s culture.
“The food is amazing there. So good,” Estabrook stated. “They have convenience stores, they have such good food, and also the people are always so nice, and it’s beautiful there.”
Traveling abroad also means experiencing landscapes very different from those in Bloomington-Normal.
“It’s surrounded by mountains and there’s rice fields, so I really love the town,” Estabrook stated. “I’m just looking forward to visiting it again.”
As Estabrook prepares to leave Bloomington-Normal for a year in Japan, she is looking forward not only to returning to a place she already loves, but also discovering how the experience will shape who she becomes.
Jeffery Kroesch an English teacher at Normal Community West is a chairman at the Sisters Cities Program.
Before Kroesch became the chairman at the Sister Cities Program, he was an educator chaperone for the ten day ambassador program they provide to students.
Kroesch becoming an educator chaperone allowed for him to become more involved within the program, leading Kroesch to become a chairman in later years.
“I didn’t realize that the trip was part of their recruiting methods to give people to join the committee,” Kroesch discussed.
As is role as chairman he works with the applicants and finalists who are wanting take part of this great opportunity.
“We have a small subcommittee meet to look over the applications and choose three to four finalists,” Kroesch added.
Kroesch has heavily been involved in the past and present exchange students who stay in Asahikawa Japan.
“If anything were to happen, I’m the primary contact point back home, so the committee can reach out to me if needed, or the student can reach out to me,” Kroesch noted.
While Kroesch was in college he studied abroad in Japan as well.
“Yeah, I was an exchange student in Osaka, Japan, for one semester in college.” Kroesch explained.
Though, Kroesch wished he had stayed a whole year instead of a semester.
The past exchange students who have stayed in Asahikawa Japan have been amazing candidates.
“We’ve always been really proud of our candidates that go,” Kroesch discussed.
The advice Kroesch gives for future exchange students is if you have the opportunity to study abroad, take that opportunity.
“It will broaden your perspective on things, it’ll give you experiences that you can’t get anywhere else,” Kroesch explained.
Kroesch will be in contact with Mathilda while she is studying abroad.
As Mathilda enters this new chapter of her life in the months to come she will have to adapt the a new culture and environment that she is not used to.
With the support from her friends, family, and the Sister Cities program Mathilda will thrive for her new experience of a life time.
