Saturday, April 10, 2010

English Language Center

Rita Prokopenko and her brother Paata and Nana have been frequent companions on trips and outings. Rita's center brings small groups of students to Lincoln in the fall and spring. Tom Cardwell from Southeast Community College helps her organize these trips and has a formal partnership with Rita's center. Early in my stay here I met a young man who hopes to come to Lincoln this spring, in less than a month. I asked him to write about himself and the center. Nika Akubardia is his name.

It is a remarkable place, full of activity. Most of the students are internally displaced persons or IDPs. Nika is as well. And hence his story reveals much about Georgia and its recent past.

This is what Nika wrote:

My name is Nika Akubardia, I am 23 old.

I am refugee from Abkhazia. Abkhazia is a of part of Georgia. In 1993 was civil war between Georgians and Abkhazians. My family forced to leave our house and leave everything what we had.

In that time in Georgia were very difficult time, my parent has moved to live in Russia to make a business. Me and my brother stayed with our grandparents. In 1994 me and my brother went to school together, I am oldest for 1 year but parents decided that we must studying together, and we were classmates. But after only one year me and brothers joined with parents in Russian. There we continue studying in school but it was a Russian school where studies in Russian, in that time we didn’t speak russian and understood almost nothing.

In shortest time we were one of the best students in class.

IN 1999 we moved once again. In this time we back to Georgia.

In 2004 I finished school and entered to the Sokhumi State University(Sokhumi is capital of Autonomy republic of Abkhazia, after war University moved to Tbilisi) and graduated in 2008. I continue studying and entered to master degree in Sokhumi state. Where I am studying today.

About ELCml I recognized from my friend. I went to the office of ECLml I to got full information.

I wrote a test and according my result I'm continuing studying,I had a test and accordingly to my test result, I took a class at once. ELCml had a some English level courses this is Beginner,Elementary, Pre-Indetmediate, Intermediate, Upper-Intermediate and Advaced. Situaction in center very caml and comfortable. There are work professionals lectors and staff. There are individual and group studying. Refugee from Abkhazia studying in center free.

ELCml corporate with Department of Abkhazia of IDP affairs, Sokhumi State University, Southeast Community College(in Lincoln Nebraska)

Than I heard about exchange program in Nebraska. Where students can see by own eyes everything in education in US. This is great opportunities for everyone who decided to get this chance.




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