In November, the Staples High School sophomore class welcomed Singaporean students as part of a new exchange program. During the following weeks, the exchange students from the Hwa Chong Institution shadowed students to learn more about American culture.

And now, this summer, those Staples students who hosted foreign exchange students will experience the other side when they fly to Singapore to complete the exchange process.

“The purpose for us is to see what the education system and culture are like in Singapore so that we can compare them to our own,” Colton Tanner ’16 said.

Many students are excited to learn about the culture and to be totally immersed in it.

“It will be a really fun experience to go to a foreign place with people from a different country and culture,” Annie Gao ’16 said.

The students, who have now been separated for several months, are looking forward to seeing their friends and reconnecting before their visit.

“I plan to re-spark the connection before we head over to Singapore,” Tanner said.

Singapore, being such a large city, can create tight living quarters and cause complications with organizing a large group, so students will live in dorms rather than homes with the Singaporean students.

“It’ll be nice to have our own space and not be in a sort of small apartment situation,” Jenna Patterson ’16 said.

Staples sophomores felt optimistic that their Singaporean counterparts had gained both knowledge and enjoyment from their stay, and now hope that they too will do the same.

The only minor concern is the extensive travel time, but even that can’t dampen students’ spirits.

“I’m really excited to go and can’t wait for the 24-hour flight!” Tanner said.