Eight South Carolina students in the Hospitality and Tourism Management programs at the College of Charleston, Clemson University, University of South Carolina, and Coastal Carolina University will be able to study abroad through a new sister-state relationship being forged between South Carolina and Queensland, Australia. Two students from each school will be able to pay tuition at their home university and study at a Queensland University at no extra cost. The South Carolina tourism industry has pledged to cover the students airline costs, so that no student will be denied access to this unique program. In turn, eight students from Queensland universities will study at South Carolina universities. Higher education is an important vehicle in shaping minds and creating our next generation of leaders, said John Crotts, director of the College of Charleston s Hospitality and Tourism Management Program and the South Carolina coordinator for the program.
International travel is a creative mechanism for students to recognize new possibilities.
The combination of both in this memoranda of understanding will be of significant educational value for the students and host universities. The agreement will also create a virtual student exchange program for kindergarten through 12th grade students. Under the program, students and educators in South Carolina will use the internet to create friendships, exchange ideas, and participate in joint-educational projects with their counterparts in Queensland. The new South Carolina-Queensland relationship stems from an official visit to Queensland by a delegation from South Carolina. This sister-state agreement will open doors for South Carolina in Australia and Southeast Asia further raising South Carolina s stature on the world stage, said S.C. Gov. Jim Hodges.