Hosting a foreign exchange student could potentially help Bladen County families trace their lineage. The first European settlers hailed from the Highlands, so a Scottish or Irish exchange student could help uncover some surprises about your ancestors and their culture.
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Who hasn’t dreamed about walking among the Egyptian pyramids, or soaking in the sun on a beach in Spain, or wandering along the Great Wall of China? Every parent wants to give their children a taste of the world, but the economic reality of international air travel for a family, not to mention hotels, passports and food, makes it tough for most of us to consider except in our daydreams.
There is a way to give your children the world – without leaving your living room. How? Host a foreign exchange student from a country you’ve always admired! Fascinated by France? Curious about China? Intrigued by India? By welcoming an international student from one of these countries into your home, you instantly open a portal to a far-off land.
Ayusa was responsible for creating a wonderful exchange experience in past years by bringing Gaku Ichikawa from Japan to Clinton, NC where he attended Midway High School, and also Rina Shinohara from Japan to Smithfield, NC where she attended South Johnston High School.
Both Gaku and Rina had a wonderful experience here in the U.S. as well as did their host families. They took many cherished memories with them back to their home country and left their everlasting mark of Japanese culture here in Sampson and Johnston County.
Bladen County families have even hosted exchange students. One family in Bladen County hosted a girl from the Netherlands a few years ago with Ayusa, and the experience was beyond great. They even discovered that they may be distantly related! The program is a great opportunity to learn more about your pre-America family lineage!
“Exchange programs are a strong, peace-promoting opportunity,” says Elizabeth Keel, an Ayusa host mom from Fairview, North Carolina. “Seeing first-hand how other cultures think and choose to behave defeats bigotry, rendering thoughtless cultural generalities meaningless. I am so fortunate to be hosting Yi my exchange student from China and to have this wonderful young woman in my life.”
Foreign exchange students come from all over the world. Ayusa matches host families with students from more than 60 different countries including Argentina, China, Ecuador, Egypt, France, Germany, Japan, Lebanon, Norway, Pakistan, Sweden, Thailand, Tunisia and Turkey.
All high school foreign exchange students are fully insured, bring their own spending money, and are proficient in English – and all high school exchange programs are regulated by the U.S. Department of State.
“We welcome host families of all shapes and sizes – families with young children, families with no children, empty nesters whose children have left home, single parents and non-traditional families,” says Connie Lawrence, Community Representative of Ayusa, a non-profit that promotes global learning and leadership through foreign exchange and study abroad opportunities for high school students. “The key requirements for a host family are to provide a safe and nurturing home environment, genuinely love children, and have a desire to learn more about a different culture.”
Volunteer host families provide foreign exchange students a nurturing environment, three meals a day and a bedroom (either private or shared with a host sibling of the same gender). Each host family and student is supported by a professionally trained community representative who works with the family and student for the entire program. All interested host families must pass a criminal background check and a home visit by an exchange organization.
Interested host families are required to fill out an application, pass a background check and interview with a local exchange program representative in their homes. Once accepted to a program, host families can view profiles of students to find the right match for their family.
“Hosting an exchange student is a life-changing experience – for the student, the host family, and the host community,” adds Lawrence. “There is no better way to teach your children about the world around them than through welcoming an international high school student into your home.”
Ayusa is currently accepting applications for families to host an exchange student for the 2023-2024 school year and is offering a $200. Referral bonus to anyone who refers a family who hosts.
The deadline to apply to host a foreign exchange student is July 31.
For more information about hosting a high school foreign exchange student, please contact Connie Lawrence at 919-552-3647, 919-612-5013 cell or clawrence@ayusa.org or visit the website at www.ayusa.org.