Former Southmoreland exchange student gets accepted into UCLA

Posted on October 12, 2017 by Abby Whitlatch in Features, Showcase // 0 Comments

Everybody has a dream. Whether it’s being famous or having a successful career, a goal is something people strive for. For Southmoreland graduate Valentina Carducci, it’s getting an opportunity to attend college in the United States.

Carducci attended Southmoreland High School as a foreign exchange student and graduated with the class of 2016.

Recently, Carducci got accepted to study microbiology, immunology and genetics at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). She’s returning from her home country of Italy to attend UCLA.

“It’s a dream come true,” said Carducci. “Going to college (in the United States) has been my dream since I was 10.”

Senior Bethany Bunner is proud of her friend for her accomplishments.

“She always talked about how important it was for her to get a good education,” said Bunner. “If it’s important to her, it’s important to me.”

While Carducci attended Southmoreland, she lived with a host family. A host family is a family who takes in a foreign exchange student as their own while the student attends school in the United States.

“When we sat down to choose a student to host, we chose Valentina based on her wonderful profile,” says Carducci’s host mother, Nicole Seese. “We chose her because she was both smart and appeared to have a lot of enthusiasm.”

Friends and family couldn’t be more proud of Carducci.

“I’m very proud of everything she’s accomplished,” said Bunner.

“ I often told her she was smarter than she ever believed she was. She will forever be part of our family,” said Seese.

Carducci is ready for the challenge.

“I will have to put a lot of effort into my studies, but it will be worth it in the end.”