Anna Mills

An 8,000 mile journey, a flight across the equator, and a jump across seven different time zones. The journey west would change Meg McCormack’s life in days. 

McCormack is a transfer senior from South Africa. Landing in the United States for the first time, McCormack felt overwhelmed for what was to come. 

“When we first arrived, I had never been in America before so it was all very new,” McCormack said, “But it kind of felt like [we] were on holiday in another place for pretty much…the first month.” 

Originally planning to move to the United Kingdom, McCormack finished her junior year at Oceanside. This summer she made the transfer to Wando. 

“The school that I was from before [in South Africa] was a small private school [and] there weren’t a lot of people, so moving here was definitely a lot bigger,” McCormack said, “It was overwhelming…the school is so big so worrying about getting to classes on time and knowing where I am…I’m still getting used to having so many people around.”

In addition to being met with the shock of a different culture, McCormack has had the opportunity to interact with more people at a larger school.  

“There are a few silly questions that I get asked but most people are pretty shocked,” McCormack said, “I’ve had somebody ask me if I take an elephant to school…Before I even mention I’m from South Africa, I always get ‘oh you’ve got a different accent where are you from?’ And then I’ll explain [and] the conversations just flow because they have so many questions.” 

McCormack has been able to find community in the various clubs and programs offered here at Wando. She is currently part of the Wando Teacher Cadets program. 

“Sometimes I just find that I kinda miss back home because everything’s so new here so I just kind of miss that normalcy [however] I’ve managed to have so many more opportunities since being here that I never really had back home…a lot of the time I do get quite excited about living here,” McCormack said. 

Becoming involved has been essential for McCormack in adjusting to this new culture. McCormack feels a large connection with her Teacher Cadet’s instructor Angela Byrd because of how understanding and helpful she has been to her. In addition to this, Byrd is grateful to have McCormack in the classroom. 

“Trying to get accustomed to our culture, the way we do things here…is a huge transition for anyone and she’s just resilient…she’s got a very strong will inside of her…she’s a great asset to our class…if someone is coming from a new place internationally, that is such a benefit for our classroom; we can learn from them,” Byrd said.

Byrd has watched as McCormack made the transition into Wando and is excited for her future. She is already impressed with McCormack’s resilience and is glad that she’s had the opportunity to open up in her class. 

“She’s done really really really well. In our teacher cadet class there’s a lot of interactions and a lot of presentations…every single day she has had something new to say, something new to bring to the conversation, something more to learn and she’s just done a super job adjusting,” Byrd said.