Happy Chinese New Year!

The CIEE New Year's Party was a huge success.  We ate delicious food and enjoyed great company.

Chi & Tim cooking for the CNY party 



Chi & Mary Beth



Jim & Mary in Chinese jackets





Black History Month

Kate, Brian, Charles, Tim, Marian, Marvin, Saskia, and Clara climbed aboard the big white van with Jim at the wheel to travel to Birmingham to tour Civil Rights sites. Birmingham was an important hub of activity during the Civil Rights movement. Here, they pose in front of the 16th Street Baptist Church, site of a bombing in 1963 by anti-segregation radicals, that killed four young girls during the height of the movement.

The Year of the Rabbit

Happy Chinese New Year!  Jim and Mary will be hosting a Chinese New Year's party at their house Sunday, February 13, at 5:00 p.m.  Please RSVP ASAP. (Sorry for the late notice.)




Please remember to attend the Civil Rights Tour (required of all grants students, cost covered by scholarship) Saturday, February 12.  We will depart Huntsville at 8:30 a.m. (we'll meet at a centralized location, based on who's coming) and return at approximately 4:30 p.m. The day will start with a tour of the 16th Street Baptist Church, site of a KKK bombing that killed 4 black girls in September, 1963, during the peak of the Civil Rights movement.  Next, we'll have lunch at Mrs. B's, a nearby restaurant specializing in soul food, and after lunch, we'll visit the Civil Rights Institute, a museum focusing on the Civil Rights movement in Alabama.  The combined cost for admissions will be $8 for students and $17 for adults.  Jim has reserved a 15 passenger van which the scholarships will pay for so there's no extra cost for that.  Lunch should be under $10 per person.  (Again, all costs are covered for grants students).

Grants Meetting in Atlanta

Marion, Saskia, Clara, Kate, and Krystyna attended the Grants Meeting in Atlanta,Georgia, with Jim, January 27-28.  They joined grants students from South Carolina, Florida, Chattanooga, TN, and Atlanta, GA, and had a great time touring the State Capitol, CNN, and the Federal Reserve Bank.

Congratulations, Tim!

Tim was one of four CIEE exchange students in the entire country to be invited to attend the upcoming CIEE National Meeting in San Diego, CA, February 18-20.  Way to go, Tim!!

Snow, Snow, Snow!

I hope you all have enjoyed the snow and time off from school this past week!  Nine inches of the white stuff is not often seen in Huntsville. 

If any of you have photos or a short description of activities or events you've participated in as a host family, and would like to share them on this blog, please email them to Jim at jpowers92@comcast.net or Mary at mpowers313@comcast.net.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year to all in the CIEE family!  Please forgive me for being a bit remiss about posting over the holidays. Before Christmas, as many of you may know, Kristina broke both ankles while jumping on a trampoline.  Our hearts go out to you, Kristina, for a speedy recovery.




Upcoming Events

• Grants Students Mid-Year Meeting will take place in Atlanta, Georgia, Thursday and Friday, January 27th & 28th.  Students will tour the Georgia State Capitol Building, the Georgia Supreme Court, and the CNN building.  This meeting is required for all grants students.

• Civil Rights Tour in Birmingham, Alabama will be Saturday, February 12th. The tour will include the 16th Street Baptist Church, the Civil Rights Institute, and "Soul" Food (yum!) More information will be coming soon. This meeting is required for all grants students.

• Chattanooga Tour will be Saturday, March 19th, and will include the Tennessee Aquarium and a Dixie River Cruise.  The Chattanooga cluster will join us for the cruise.