Andrew White
Supervisor: Dr. Scott Douglas
City: Vernon, BC
Occupation: District Vice Principal-Vernon International Student Program
Year: 2025
Subject:
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
- Leadership
Description
For many years, international students in BC’s K-12 education system have lamented about the lack of a truly integrative experience within our schools and communities. They see Canadians as friendly and welcoming, yet struggle to integrate with Canadian students, and into Canadian society. Furthermore, limited research and practical work have been conducted in the area of international student integration in BC’s K-12 educational experience. As such, this capstone project investigates this issue in depth, discusses current Canadian international student statistics and trends, reviews research related to this topic, details a developmental framework for examining barriers to and strategies that support integration, and offers a plan for a three-part professional development seminar series that will be offered to improve the integrative experiences of international students in School District #22. The hope is that this research-informed seminar series has a positive effect on international student integration, and can be offered more widely across British Columbia.
Student Biography
Andrew White has spent the last 20 years working in the SD#22-Vernon International Student Program as a teacher and administrator. He is passionate about supporting international students and believes in the immense value of international programs in BC’s K-12 education system.