Global Citizenship

Exchanges strengthen a student's ability to see multiple perspectives and to communicate, collaborate, and celebrate the uniqueness of others, with compassion for all humans and a sense of responsibility to our world.

Confidence and Independence

Enhancing global awareness, exchanges build self-confidence, foster independent thinking, and serve as the foundation for an invaluable global network of ongoing relationships.

Sisterhood

Students form new bonds and friendships through their shared experiences, bringing an appreciation and understanding of what life is like in other parts of the world.

Exchange visits are typically 10 days to two weeks long. Each relationship is unique, and each exchange includes activities that make it a distinctive experience. There are key components to every exchange:

• Formal welcome and farewell ceremonies
• Time in classes and at student life events at the host school
• Excursions to historical and cultural sites
• Day of service or service project (with Ursuline sister schools)
• Daily life with a host family
• Formal presentation/performance by guest students at the host school

Brazil

Colegio Santa Ursula in Ribeirao, Sao Paulo, Brazil

• Founded in 1912
• Partnership began in 2011

Colegio Santa Ursula is one of Ursuline's co-ed sister schools. It is also one of the largest sister schools with more than 1,500 students. Visiting Ursuline Academy of Dallas students live with a host family, attend classes at Colegio Santa Ursula, and visit important cultural sites in and around Ribeirao Preto.

Chile

Colegio Santa Ursula in Santiago, Chile

• Founded in 1939
• Partnership began in 2007

Colegio Santa Ursula is a private educational institution located in Vitacura, a suburb of Santiago. The school operates under the sponsorship and leadership of the Ursuline Sisters. Visiting UA students live with a host family, attend classes at Colegio Santa Ursula, and visit important cultural sites in the greater Santiago area. They also visit the city of Maipu where there is a second Ursuline school.

China

Beijing Huaxia Girls' School in Beijing, China

• Founded in 1996
• Partnership began in 1997

The partnership with Beijing Huaxia Girls' School is the cornerstone of the Global Relationships and Cultural Exchange program. Beijing Huaxia Girls' School — Ursuline’s first sister school and modeled after Ursuline Dallas — was the first all-girl school to open in China since the Cultural Revolution. Visiting UA students stay with a host family, attend classes at Beijing Huaxia Girls' School, and tour many of the ancient historic sites of China, including the Great Wall.

England

Ursuline High School in Wimbledon, England

• Founded in 1892
• Partnership began in 2009

Ursuline High School started with three students in 1892 and now has more than 1,360 students. Visiting Ursuline Academy of Dallas students live with a host family, attend classes at Ursuline High School, and visit important cultural sites in and around London.

France

College Notre Dame Le Menimur, in Vannes, France

• Founded in 1627
• Partnership began in 2015

Jordan

Ahliyyah School for Girls in Amman, Jordan

• Founded in 1926
• Partnership began in 2018

Located in Amman, Jordan, and established in 1926, the Ahliyyah School for Girls (ASG) focuses heavily on empowering the young women of Jordan. Their Superintendent, Haifa Najjar, is a formidable educator and Senator in the Upper House of the Jordanian Parliament.

Peru

Colegio Santa Ursula in Lima, Peru

• Founded in 1936
• Partnership began in 2007

Colegio Santa Ursula has been an International Baccalaureate World School since December 2012. The education is based on a comprehensive, multilingual structure. Visiting UA students live with a host family, attend classes at Colegio Santa Ursula, and visit important cultural sites in and around Lima.

South Africa

Brescia House School in Johannesburg, South Africa

• Founded in 1966
• Partnership began in 2012

Brescia House School is an independent Catholic day school for girls from 5 years old to Grade 12. The school is named after the city of Brescia in Lombardy, Northern Italy, where St. Angela Merici founded the first order of teaching nuns in 1535. Visiting UA students live with a host family, attend classes at Brescia House School, and visit important cultural sites in and around Johannesburg.

Taiwan

Stella Matutina Girls School in Taichung, Taiwan

• Founded in 1963
• Partnership began in 2017

Stella Matutina Girls School was founded by the Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Mary. Like Ursuline, Stella Matutina Girls School delivers a strong Catholic, all-girls education. The school also emphases the importance of simplicity and modesty. Visiting UA students stay with a host family, attend classes at Stella Matutina Girls School, and tour many of the historic sites of Taiwan.

United States

Ursuline Academy in Wilmington, Delaware

• Founded in 1893

Visiting UA students live with a host family and attend classes at Ursuline Academy of Wilmington. Visits have included tours of the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., the National Mall, Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology, the Hagley Museum, and participation in a Mass with Pope Francis who was in Philadelphia on his first visit to the United Sates.

The Catholic Archdiocese of Kampala, Uganda

Ursuline delegations visit Uganda in collaboration with the Catholic Archdiocese of Kampala, Uganda. UA students experience first-hand the challenges and possibilities of Africa. Students also participate directly in at least one service experience and learn about the work of the Catholic Church in Africa, the Nsambya Babies Home for abandoned babies, Bead for Life, a non-profit organization which helps women lift themselves out of poverty through entrepreneurship, and the YES (Youth Encounter the Savior) Centre, a Catholic parish which includes vocational schools for women in the local community. Ursuline students also have opportunities to develop friendships with their African peers from St. Peter's Catholic School.

St. Catherine’s Girls Primary School in Nangina, Kenya

This special friendship between our schools began in 2006. St. Catherine’s was founded by Ursuline Sisters but is now run by local Sisters still very much with Ursuline tradition. UA students raise funds for tuition for orphaned girls to attend St. Catherine’s. The Student Council and Global Advisory Council are the primary supporters, but the UA community has also donated shoes, art supplies, bedding, classroom supplies, and playground equipment over the years. Typically, Ursuline’s Uganda delegation delivers the donations directly to St. Catherine’s Principal Sr. Anne Onyancha, who visited Ursuline in 2007.

The World Affairs Council of DFW

The mission of the nonprofit, nonpartisan World Affairs Council of Dallas/Fort Worth is to promote international awareness, understanding, and connections to enhance the region's global stature and to prepare North Texans to thrive in a complex world. Ursuline has been closely involved with DFW WAC since 2006. Ursuline students and teachers receive invitations to the many speakers and events that the Council sponsors each year. For the past two years, Ursuline students have been the only high school students in the nation to attend the World Affairs Council National Conference in Washington, D.C. In 2014, DFW WAC named Cecilia Nipp, UA Director of Global Relationships and Cultural Exchange, as the recipient of its International Educator of the Year Award.