The Oak Hill School International Program exists to foster a more diverse community. As the world becomes increasingly more interdependent through technology, our vision is for students to communicate empathetically with people from different countries, to create an understanding and excitement for different cultures, and to embrace a wider perspective.
All Oak Hill students are encouraged to travel outside the United States, either privately or with an OHS program, by the time they graduate from high school. In addition, Oak Hill international students provide a face to face opportunity to make friends and to broaden one’s global perspective with a peer through classroom experiences, playing on the same sports team, and in creating lasting friendships that often lead to reciprocal visits to other countries.
International students are also expected to make presentations in Oak Hill classrooms that inform every OHS student about the countries represented on campus. To this end, there are activities throughout the school year geared to developing a modicum of cultural competence in every Oak Hill student. The activities include guest speakers, group discussions, social gatherings, visits to the homes of other students and attendance at community events.
Cultural competence is also addressed in the language curriculum at Oak Hill. Language practice circles, in conjunction with the University of Oregon Intercultural Studies Program, provide opportunities to discuss cultural behaviors as well as to practice Spanish, French or Mandarin Chinese, all of which are offered at Oak Hill School.
