Page 28 - NJC 2021-22 Academic Calendar Book

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INTERNATIONAL PROGRAM continued
● International Service Projects
NJC students participate annually in week-long service projects such as building homes for Habitat for Humanity, allowing for a more intensive cross-cultural exchange. Through these service projects, our students gain a real sense of issues related to the global human condition, and they return home with a new perspective, vision of the world, and sense of responsibility.
● Charitable Giving
The students of Neuchâtel Junior College participate in a number of charitable events throughout the school year. For the past several years, NJC students have organized charitable events and directed the proceeds to organizations.
● Global Leaders
It is essential for young people to appreciate the benefits of rolling up their sleeves by participating in practical, impactful service work at the grass-roots level. NJC students have the opportunity to do so during our service trip offerings. They find the service work to be personally challenging and profound, ultimately expanding their perspectives on the world and teaching them that change requires action.
At NJC, we understand that it is equally as important for students to have knowledge of the organizations that work to effect change in the world on a global scale. Whether our students’ career interests lie in the areas of medicine, engineering, commerce, law, the arts, or politics and diplomacy, living in the heart of Europe gives them greater access to and a more in-depth understanding of these organizations. Visiting the Canadian Embassy in Bern, the United Nations in Geneva, the Red Cross, CERN, or being addressed by a member of the United Nations’ High Commission for Refugees, gives students a better understanding of how their careers might one day have an impact as leaders beyond Canada’s borders—within the global arena.
A balance of local excursions, integrated trips organized by the Junior College and independent travel — organized by students with the school’s guidance — is recommended to help students grow in a variety of ways.
TRAVEL PROGRAM
Local Excursions: “Les Défis et Découvertes”
Les Défis et Découvertes are local opportunities for physical, outdoor and cultural pursuits within Switzerland.
Physical and outdoor pursuits are balanced with experiences that lead to cultural enrichment. Several school trips have a physical component and students have opportunities for physical and outdoor activities with their membership in various school and community clubs, as well as access to the university fitness facilities, playing fields and endless wooded trails. The découvertes or adventures into the cultural life of Switzerland deepen students’ aesthetic appreciation of the richness of
Swiss heritage. NJC’s défis and découvertes not only provide students with physical and cultural challenges, but expose them to team sports, the outdoors, vineyard villages and rampart towns steeped in art, folklore and history.
Some examples of défis et découvertes include:
● Mountain hikes
● Jura cross-country / snow excursion
● Tour du Canton (spring) – 10 km runs in various Neuchâtel canton villages
● Bike excursions – Neuchâtel and surrounding cantons