The Mecklenburg Board of County Commissioners recently welcomed a group of students from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany, fostering international relations and education. The visit included students and hosts from the South Academy of International Languages (SAIL) who attended a board meeting on May 6 to express gratitude for Mecklenburg County’s role in strengthening ties between the two regions.
Mecklenburg County has maintained a business, cultural, and educational partnership with Mecklenburg-Vorpommern for over three decades. The 15 German students from Recknitz Campus in Laage participated in the meeting by reciting their homeland’s state poem.
This visit followed an April 2025 exchange trip where nine SAIL students traveled to Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. SAIL is a public K-8 magnet school that offers second language immersion in Chinese, French, German, and Japanese. During their stay in Germany, Charlotte-Mecklenburg students explored universities, historic sites, and the birthplace of Queen Charlotte.
Dr. David Lynn, Principal of SAIL, expressed appreciation to the Board for reviving the exchange program between the schools. “That rekindled a partnership between two schools that started 15 years ago as a teacher-to-teacher partnership,” said Dr. Lynn. “Following a pause due to the pandemic, we were able to re-establish the partnership focusing on student exchange.”
The English-language immersion program at Recknitz Campus mirrors the German-language immersion program at Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. During their visit to the Board meeting, CMS students from SAIL led off by reciting the U.S. Pledge of Allegiance in both German and English.
