An eighteen day professional development exchange focused on the Azeri educational system, classroom technology, and cultural instruction. Training and tours showcased schools in Azerbaijan, community technology development, and Caucasus politics. Participants visited schools, administrators, teachers, community organizations, and governmental Ministers. With a week-long homestay in communities across Azerbaijan, US teachers visited Baku, Sheki, and many smaller towns and cities across the country. The goals of the ACE exchange were to: enable U.S. and Azerbaijani educators to form a long term online relationship increasing students’ knowledge of the other country, increase technology applications in schools in the U.S. and Azerbaijan, and foster engaged civics dialogue and civics instruction.

Several events punctuated the participants’ experiences. U.S. teachers visited the Zagulba Internally Displaced Persons camp north of Baku listening to first-hand accounts of residents’ 14-year old flight from their homes. U.S. teachers also met with Mr. Misir Mardanov, Azerbaijan’s Minister of Education with whom PH has worked favorably for years promoting internet provision and democracy education in middle and secondary schools.

Five Azerbaijani teachers explored civics instruction and classroom technology use in an eighteen-day professional exchange in the United States as a part of the Azerbaijan Connections and Exchange program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Chosen based on their successful collaboration with American teachers engaging students in online civics projects, participants enjoyed a one week homestay in their partner teacher’s community to develop project direction and absorb U.S. culture. The group also visited Vermont schools, technology instruction non-profit organizations and met with the Permanent Mission of Azerbaijan to the United Nations. In July 2005, U.S. teachers will complete the reciprocal exchange by traveling to Azerbaijan to explore the Azerbaijani educational system and culture for inclusion in their U.S. classroom.

Led Dr. Fran Winfrey, president of the Center for Educational Enterprises, Inc., the Youth Leadership Exchange Program was a month-long reciprocal exchange involving teachers and students from Armenia, Azerbaijan and the U.S. This program aimed to build strong communities by fostering civic leadership and participation.

The first phase of this project took place online as part of the School Connectivity programs in each country. Through State Department funded computer centers in Armenia and Azerbaijan, participants got to know each other establishing a baseline for future project activities. The second phase took place February 9-March 9, 2004 when the Eurasian participants were hosted by two high schools in Florida. The goal of this project was to design a civic education survey instrument and gather data on each other’s communities. The survey results were incorporated into an informational booklet about the operation of each other’s government. While in Florida, students and teachers participated in two seminars focusing on the idea of developing mutual understanding among nations.

The second phase of program was held in March/April 2004. US participants traveled to Armenia and Azerbaijan where students finalized work on informational booklets. Students engaged in a cultural program visiting local and historical sites in each hosting country. Concluding the exchange, students and teachers communicated with their US counterparts creating joint projects that later served as learning resources for others.