Camden Hills Goes Global

By: Melanie Brooks


Yesterday I spent the day in Camden with MPBN radio news producer Anne Ravana. She was heading down to Camden Hills High School to conduct some interviews for a story she's working on for tonight's broadcast and I went along to conduct some interviews of my own.

Camden Hills is looking to become a Visa issuing school so that they can start accepting foreign tuition students. Principal Nick Ithomitis has been thinking about this idea for about two years. With ever tightening budgets and a projected decrease in student enrollment over the next few years, Ithomitis believes now is the time to move forward.

"In these tough economic times, having tuition kids is financially appealing," Ithomitis says. Three students from abroad have already inquired about enrolling at Camden Hills, but without Visa issuing status, these students have to find programs like the American Field Service (AFS) to travel through. These programs last up to a year at the most -- not enough time to earn a high school diploma.

New England is a hotbed for foreign students looking to get an American high school education because it's safe and close to New England colleges and universities, Ithomitis says. He is also looking forward to exposing the school and community to cultural experiences through these foreign students. His plan is to start small -- a few students living with host families and hopes to eventually grow to have on campus dormitories.

With a school that offers such classes as visual and media technology, intro to photography, theater, Latin, and honors chemistry, Camden Hills already seems more like a private high school than public. Keeping these programs is extremely important to Ithomitis says.

"If something doesn't budge soon, like a lot of schools in Maine, we're going to be in dire straits," he says. Ithomitis isn't sure what they would charge for tuition for foreign students, but it would be somewhere between $25,000 and $35,000. Ithomitis says there is already room in the classrooms for more students without creating more space or hiring many new people. Offsetting the declining enrollment with foreign students also means that Ithomitis won't have to lay off any teachers in the next two years.

Camden Hills will start the application process this summer in hopes of accepting tuition students in the fall of 2010. For more on this topic keep your eyes out for the September Education issue of Bangor Metro or listen to Anne Ravana's story tonight at 5:30.