Bhubaneswar, Dec. 5: Two tribal students from Odisha will take part in a special event at the ‘US Cultural Immersion Institute-2014’ for teachers and students of English Access Micro-Scholarship (EAMS) programme in the US scheduled for June next year.

Bhutal Hansdah and Shantilata Murmu, both students of Class VIII at Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS) here, are among 65 students drawn from seven institutes across the country. The US consulate selected the duo by merit of good performance in English language in the scholarship programme. They will attend a three-week session between May and June.

The programme will provide the students a chance to visit museums, education environments (high schools and community colleges or institutions of higher education) and get to know its music, theatre, recreational activities, and sporting events.

Hansda, an orphan who belongs to the Santhal tribe of Mayurbhanj district, had travelled from his village to Bhubaneswar to take up a job as a labourer. “A teacher from KISS got me admitted here and since then my life changed,” he said, adding that he wished to become a doctor.

“The scholarship programme helped us a lot. We were given very good training with the help of audio-visual methods and communication practice,” said Murmu, who hails from Keonjhar. She said she would help her community become aware against superstition and witchcraft prevalent in her area.

“I am very excited about the event and this will be the first time that I will travel by air,” said Murmu, who has also never been on a train.

KISS founder Achyuta Samanta said: “Our students will get the opportunity to interact with American peers, visit museum, cultural centres, schools and gain learning. This is an achievement for us.”