OTTAWA, June 9, 2015 – Languages Canada will celebrate the second annual World Student Day on June 12, 2015 in cities across the country. Celebrations will take place in: Halifax, NS; Glace Bay, NS; Charlottetown, PEI; Montreal, QC; Toronto, ON; Niagara, ON; Winnipeg, MB; Calgary and Edmonton, AB; Vancouver, BC; and Victoria, BC.
Special guests will include: Immigration Minister Lena Diab, Wendy Luther, President & CEO, Edu Nova (Halifax); Catherine Binnette, Tourism Montreal (Montreal); Han Dong, MPP, Trinity-Spadina, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities (Toronto); Kathy Corrigan, MLA (Vancouver); Mayor Lisa Helps, Paul Nursey, CEO of Tourism Victoria, Kathy Corrigan, MLA, Andrew Weaver, MLA (Victoria).
“World Student Day is a unique opportunity for students and language education professionals to connect and celebrate their contribution to Canadian and international education and culture. The success of last year’s inaugural event demonstrated how much the sector has grown, reminded us of the great work we are doing to make this a better world, and connected us to the unique stories of individual students and teachers,” says Gonzalo Peralta, Executive Director of Languages Canada.
Languages Canada’s 225 members hosted more than 130,000 international students who studied English or French in 2013. These students came from around the world (top five countries are Japan, Brazil, China, South Korea and Saudi Arabia) and contributed more than $1.4 billion to the Canadian economy in 2013 in tuition, living and tourism expenses. Approximately 30% of these students continued on to post-secondary programs in Canadian colleges and universities upon completing their language studies.
“Language students contribute immensely to our city, province and country. It’s vitally important that we take the time to recognize and celebrate what the language education sector brings to our communities and local economies. Language programs contribute to local culture and tourism and, through activities like World Student Day, they raise awareness and knowledge of other cultures,” says Sherry Yuan Hunter, Director, English Language Program and International Initiatives at the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies and Languages Canada board member.
Fun activities, such as talent shows, potlucks, sports, music and cultural activities of interest to students and staff alike are on offer in each city. Celebrations are held by Languages Canada members and some events are ticketed.
Use the #WSD2015 hashtag on Twitter!
For media inquiries, please contact:
Sarah Snowdon
Communications Manager
ssnowdon@languagescanada.ca
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