Συνεργασία AFS - ACS

ACS-AFS Collaborations

The ACS Field Trip is one of the initiatives in the collaboration between two distinguished American educational institutions in Greece, the American Community Schools of Athens (ACS) and the American Farm School in Thessaloniki (AFS). At ACS the language of instruction is English.

The American Farm School welcomed a group of forty 9^th grade students and five chaperones (Brian Gerbracht, Stelios Kalogridakis, April Wanex, Tina Dellas [group leader], and Matina Katsiyianni) from the American Community Schools on January 30, 2012. The primary goals of the field trip were to provide students with an overview of the American Farm School; expose students to the practical application of sciences in the research lab, in the classroom and on the AFS campus; to introduce students to the city of Thessaloniki and develop relationships between AFS students and ACS students.  

During their stay here at AFS, I also spoke with Mr. Gerbracht, the principal, about the 10^th grade Business and Marketing class. We brainstormed possible ways of connecting his class with a new pilot class here at AFS (project through the Junior Achievement Program) focused towards educating students on how to create their own business (taught by Ms. Giota Hatzopoulou and Ms. Maria Rapti). My ideas are:

1. We first could establish online high school courses both at ACS and AFS, an idea that Mr. Gerbracht is enthusiastic about. We can create/design an online Business and Marketing course. Both AFS and ACS students could take the same course. 
2. Secondly, I also suggested the possibility of showing ACS students how the students here at AFS sell their vegetables on campus as a student-run business. Next year, ACS students could possibly come for a field trip to create a product to sell in collaboration with AFS students. The students would spend the field trip planning the business and then begin selling it at the AFS Campus Store. AFS students will continue to sell the product and send updates and reports to ACS with the conclusion of the project still up for discussion and ideas.  
3. Collaborate with the Center for Agricultural Entrepreneurship by including lectures in the course - will add depth and credibility.

I would love your thoughts on this collaboration and would genuinely appreciate any ideas/comments you may have. 

If you don't know what Junior Achievement is or what students in this organization do, this is an example of what they did at Pierce College last January: Junior Achievement Video - Pierce College