Our Students & Teachers

Get to know the students and teachers that are GAPP´s lifeline, as they discover Germany's rich culture, history, and language. We're honored to be part of their journey!

GAPP Students ©Webster Groves High School

Exchange with Partner Schools

Student Films

Somewhere in Southern Germany

Impressions by Ryleigh Roper

Impressions by Ryleigh Roper | © Ryleigh Roper
My exchange to Germany

Meet Rileigh from Michigan, who traveled to Germany and produced a video about her experience.

Meet Rileigh from Michigan, who traveled to Germany and produced a video about her experience. Learn about Spaghetti-Ice-Cream, German castles, international communities, Germany's strategies to tackle climate change, and finding inspiration for the future. | © Rileigh Wine
We are GAPP

Thank you to the students and teachers of Heinrich Heine Gymnasium and Columbia River High School

Thank you to the students and teachers of Heinrich Heine Gymnasium and Columbia River High School. | © H.-Heine Gym/Columbia River HS

Spotlight on former GAPP students

Cari Schmitz

Cari Schmitz participated in a GAPP exchange in 2005. Now she is interning at a company in Einbeck in Germany, before starting her Ph.D.
Interview with Cari
Isaiah Cram

“I have always wanted to travel from a young age. However, I never actually had the opportunity to travel out of the United States before this,” writes Isaiah Cram from Jackson, MI, about his 3-week GAPP trip to Germany.
Isaiah's GAPP experience
Katie Henly

Katie Henly currently works as the Program Coordinator for Germany at Intercultural Student Experiences, a Minnesota based non-profit, helping German language teachers across the country plan their exchange trips to Germany.
Interview with Katie

AATG Outstanding GAPP Coordinator

AATG / Goethe-Institut Outstanding GAPP Coordinator award has been established to recognize outstanding German educators who organize GAPP exchanges at their school. Each year, one AATG member from an elementary, middle school, or high school will be recognized for going above and beyond to offer a yearly or biennial GAPP exchange at their school.

AATG/Goethe-Institut USA Outstanding GAPP Coordinator Award Winners:

2024: Jason Herrman, Horizon High School, Thornton, Colorado

2023: Amanda Beck, William Henry Harrison High School, West Lafayette, Indiana

GAPP Coordinators

GAPP recognizes the effort and dedication of GAPP Coordinators, nominated by collegues, who have successfully lead students on short-term exchanges to Germany and that show a passion for cross-cultural exchange and collaboration.

I currently teach German at Nicolet High School/Glen Hills Middle School, in Glendale, WI. I have lead 12 GAPP Exchanges to visit our partner school, Gymnasium Leopoldinum in Passau, Germany!

One of my favorite memories from an exchange was during the 2002 exchange. We took part in the 50th anniversary celebration of Passau’s Europäische Wochen. Our students put together a 30 minute bilingual show in which they explained the ties connecting our two cultures each decade and then sang a song. The Nicolet students worked really hard on it because they wanted to share and give back to our partner school, families and community. It reminds me of the reciprocal nature of the GAPP relationships.
I currently teach German at Enumclaw High School, in Enumclaw, WA. I have lead 4 GAPP Exchanges to visit our partner school, Karl-von-Closen Gymnasium in Eggenfelden, Germany!

My favorite part of leading exchanges to Germany is seeing the relationships between my students and their partners develop. In the months leading up to the trip they get so excited with each new thing they learn about their partners. Our arrival and departure is always so emotional. so many of the students stay in contact after the trip and even visit each other years later. I'm grateful that my partner teacher has become a good friend - each exchange is more fun than the last!
I currently teach German at Lomira High School, in Lomira, WI. I have lead 5 GAPP Exchanges to visit our partner school, Thomas-Morus-Gymnasium in Daun, Germany!

GAPP has been an influential part of my life. I participated as a student in 2002, and it is one of the things that lead me to become a German teacher. I still keep in touch with my exchange partner 20 years later!

Now, I love seeing [my students] use the language and skills that I've taught them in class to communicate with their host families, to use public transportation and maps, and to really explore the cities and the cultures of each area we see on the exchange.
I currently teach German at Wissahickon High School, in Ambler, PA. I have lead 13 GAPP Exchanges to visit our partner school, Ernst-Moritz-Arndt Gymnasium in Osnabruek (27 exchanges overall in 3 states with 2 partner schools)!

Having done so many exchanges, the most rewarding part of GAPP is seeing how it transforms the students who participate on both sides of the exchange. I am still in touch with students from every exchange I have ever taken and all have benefited long-term from their GAPP experience. GAPP is the regular shot in the arm that has kept me going as a teacher, even when times are tough. It is the single most rewarding part of my job, and I couldn't imagine being a German teacher without it!