Hello, my name is Zion Williams-El and I am a 16-year-old sophomore at KIPP NYC College Prep High School. I have been selected for my first choice CIEE program, which is Language & Culture Summer Abroad in Tokyo, Japan.

I have always been interested in Japanese culture, influenced by my dad and older brother's interest in Japanese animation or anime. While my interest started with anime, I started becoming more interested in manga, Japanese history and especially language. After taking Spanish 1 in freshman year of high school, I made a goal to become pentalingual and I did not even have to think about what my third language on my language-acquiring journey would be.

In the CIEE Japanese Language & Culture course I will take language classes with native Japanese instructors, visit historical sites, and museums and throughout the duration of my month-long stay in Tokyo. I look forward to residing with a homestay family, acquainting myself with people with a different culture from my own, and finding a second home there. I will also be able to engage with other CIEE applicants with interest in Japan and learn with them. By donating, you can fund these once-in-lifetime experiences, and cover tuition and flight expenses.

I am so grateful for any donations and even more so your support toward my journey.

Having and more importantly taking advantage of this opportunity will allow me to achieve my goal of not just speaking but learning the culture around a language, and provide me a new perspective on my future career in medicine. Your support invaluable to this endeavor. Thank you.