Help Zanna Study Abroad in Shanghai, China.

你好!（hello) My name is Zanna Paraskevas！

I am a Junior in the International Baccalaureate program at Cocoa Beach Jr/Sr High School. I am taking advanced classes, including IB statistics and Business Management and participate in many activities, such as JROTC, yearbook, sports, and Key Club.

Learning languages is one of my greatest pleasures and rewarding challenges. Although I am lucky enough to have been speaking French and Spanish since I was young, learning Chinese has been one of my biggest goals the past few years. By studying Mandarin, I am able to experience a feeling I never quite understood as a multilingual child. The language learning journey is confusing and frustrating, but it leads to an understanding that is so satisfying and encouraging. My current school does not offer Chinese, so I have been taking it as an online class the past two years, in addition to my regular 7-class schedule. While this has been beneficial, I know immersion is the best way for me to make rapid progress, grow as a person and truly pursue something I love.

I am so happy to have been recently accepted into the CIEE high school study abroad program in Shanghai, China. This 4-week summer intensive language program includes local homestays, in-class lessons and educational excursions. Going to China is an opportunity of a lifetime, and I do not know when or if I will have it again.

The cost of the program includes 4 weeks of lodging, meals, language classes, travel insurance, transportation in the country, and daily educational field trips. The total cost is 7,000 USD, and the additional airfare will cost around 2,000 USD. I have already used my own funds and scholarship money to pay 1,500 USD.

I hope that you might be willing to support my study abroad experience in some way. I would be grateful for any donation, as every little bit helps. This will be a learning experience I will never forget, as I know the most important things in life come from experiences–lessons learned, people met, and places discovered. For me, this experience will be the most memorable, and I would be forever grateful for any donations to help fuel my dreams.

太谢谢了 (thank you very much)

-林山。 (Zanna)