Local Girl Wins UWC Place On Vancouver Island

by Sue Beesley
(Tynygongl)

Local pupil Anwen Bowers from Ysgol David Hughes, Menai Bridge, Anglesey has won a place at one of the internationally famous United World Colleges.

Anwen will attend Pearson College in Victoria, Vancouver Island for two years to follow the academically challenging International Baccalaureate.

As well as a diverse programme of community service, creative activity, personal challenge and global awareness.

United World Colleges (UWC) is the only truly global educational movement which brings together students from all over the world at pre-university level, and is headed by HM Queen Noor of Jordan, and former South African President Nelson Mandela.

Students are selected on merit alone, and live together in a unique environment designed to foster internationall understanding, peace, justice and a commitment to serving their communities.

Atlantic College in Wales, the first UWC, was founded in 1962, the project of educationalist Kurt Hahn (instrumental in the founding of the Outward Bound movement).

He believed that much could be done to overcome the hostility of the then Cold War, if young people from around the world could come together at an age where they were already grounded in their own cultures, but still impressionable enough to learn from others.

Today there are thirteen United World Colleges, located across the world from Wales to Canada.

Each college has its own distinctive character, but sharing a common mission for peace and international understanding which is now more relevant than ever.

It is common for more than 80 different nationalities to be
represented in a College at any one time, and students come from a very wide range of backgrounds.

Graduates of UWCs have gone on to play leading roles in
international organisations, business, science, politics, the voluntary sector and many other fields - two have even become astronauts!

Anwen is one of the approximately fifty students selected to attend from Great Britain this year, and went through a competitive process of application andinterviews earlier this year.

Anwen said:

I am very excited to be able to attend one of the United World Colleges! In today's rapidly changing world, seemingly threatened more than ever by
conflict, international and cultural understanding are vital if we are to achieve peace.

I hope that by attending Pearson College I will be able to
broaden my own cultural horizons, as well as challenging myself to play an active part in my community and learning new skills.

I feel very privileged to have been selected to represent my country.

For more information on the United World Colleges, and how to apply please visit www.uwc.org.uk or www.uwc.org.

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