July 7, 2004
Teacher goes on tour de France
Michael Durbin part of Fulbright exchange program
By
Herald staff writer
Parlez-vous francais?
Traverse City Central High School French teacher Michael Durbin will put his knowledge of the French language to the test when he spends the upcoming school year teaching English to high school students in France.
Durbin, his wife Cara and 18-month-old son Finn will spend the next year living in Chartres, a town 60 miles southwest of Paris, as part of a Fulbright teacher exchange. To complete the exchange, Betty Mouth of Chartres will spend a year teaching French at Central High School.
"I have been looking to teach abroad and this is such a great opportunity. It doesn't involve looking for a new job, and typically doesn't even involve looking for housing," said Durbin who was accepted into the exchange program after three years of applying.
"I was about to give up, but my wife encouraged me keep trying, and Central's principal Mike Murray was very encouraging and supportive in making this happen."
When Durbin found out that he had been accepted into the exchange program, he and his wife were just about to travel to France with a group of students during spring break. He took the opportunity to contact Mouth and arrange a meeting.
"We met at a cafe in Paris and talked about things. She is great - the students and staff are going to love her," Durbin said.
"Unfortunately, though, her apartment is not available. It is a challenge to try to rent an apartment in France as a foreigner. We have been doing most of our search on the Internet," said Durbin who will leave for France several days before his wife and son in hopes of having a place ready for them when they arrive.
"Even having a phone hooked up is a bureaucratic challenge."
Despite the challenges, the Durbins are looking forward to spending time exploring Chartres and the surrounding area.
"My wife and I have both traveled through Europe, but with a child you notice different things, like little parks that my wife and Finn can visit while I'm at school."
Durbin will be teaching at a high school similar in size to Central.
"The students will have been studying English for four or five years, but they have an emphasis on the written language more so than speaking," noted Durbin who looks forward to using French on a daily basis.
"I'm afraid my French speaking skills are thickly coated with dust. Using the language every day will be a wonderful professional and personal development for me," said Durbin who hopes to promote life-long learning as a way of life to his students.