The links between Achill and Cleveland are set to deepen – thanks to a novel student exchange initiative that will see bonds being forged between teenagers from the two places.
Next Wednesday, 16 students from two high schools in the Ohio city will travel to Achill for a four-day insight into the lives of their teenage counterparts there and the history, culture, and activities that surround them.
The trip is the latest in a series of co-operative initiatives stretching back over the last eight years since Cleveland and Achill were officially twinned. But this is the first time the focus has been specifically on the next generation, something which is no coincidence, according to Terence Dever, CEO of Comhlacht Forbartha Áitiúil Acla (CFÁA ).
“Since we twinned in 2003, we have been trying to build up links between the two areas and the two peoples at as many different levels as possible. This is aimed at the young people of Achill and Cleveland, the ones who will carry this relationship into the future,” he said.
“The idea is that the Cleveland students will learn about the history of Achill, its culture, its beauty, its music and its folklore, while also seeing modern life here through the eyes of the Achill teenagers who will host them. The Cleveland teenagers will, in turn, give their Achill counterparts an insight into life in Cleveland from their perspective.”
The group will receive a formal reception, presided over by the Cathaoirleach of Mayo County Council, on the evening they arrive. Over the next three days, they will take part in a host of outdoor activities, will get a historical tour of the island, an introduction to its rich musical heritage through a special evening hosted by Scoil Acla, and will pay a visit to neighbouring Clare Island. All the time, the American visitors will be accompanied by a host group of Achill students, from whom they will get a deeper understanding of youth life on the island.
The idea for the exchange came about last October when Kenneth Deery, treasurer of CFÁA, and Kate O’Malley, an Achill businesswoman who was born in Cleveland, made a presentation to students from St Ignatius and Walsh Jesuit high schools in Cleveland. So successful was this event that Mr Deery and Ms O’Malley began to correspond with Dan Bizga, a teacher in Walsh Jesuit, whose mother is a native of Dooega.
“The idea developed from there,” says Mr Bizga, who will lead the Cleveland delegation. “Within a couple of months we had decided to attempt an exchange this summer and we have been fine-tuning the details ever since.
“The students from Cleveland are a mixture of boys and girls, all between the ages of 16 and 18, and all nearing the end of their time in high school. They are eager to learn more about life in Ireland, particularly in Achill, because they all know people at home who have Achill ancestors or they have Achill lineage themselves.”
The Cleveland students have already been in Northern Ireland for almost two weeks and did a two-week pre-departure course to develop their understanding of the various places they are visiting, including Achill.
It is hoped that a return trip will take place next year, with local students travelling to the US city where 200,000 people claim Achill ancestry.
