Foreign Exchange Programs A life-changing experience By Natalie Slieter | Photos by Kelly Middlebrooks
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pening your home to provide housing and food to a stranger for a year could seem difficult, yet that is precisely what host families worldwide do for foreign exchange students. Greenheart Exchange Local Coordinator Angie Baack works with families and students participating in foreign exchange programs. As a liaison between the schools, host families, and students, Baack checks in with families and students at least once each month and always remains available to offer support. She has a spare bedroom available for respite care if needed. Baack explains, “If there were a family emergency, or if host parents just want to get away for a weekend, I can provide temporary care for that student.” According to Baack, most host families do so because they have a personal tie to exchange; either their parents hosted when they were younger, were friends with an exchange student in high school, or know someone who hosted. She admits that it’s hard for those with no experience to take that step. Yet Baack encourages them to consider. “By hosting, you are literally changing your life and the life of the student by giving them the experience of a lifetime! “ Lacy Steinberg, a current Host Mom to Marina, explains her foreign exchange experience by saying, “It’s an ongoing experience for your family, your extended family, and the whole school, which fosters curiosity about the whole world and how others live. Our family has two younger girls, so they get the experience of having an older sister. We have created a lasting bond with Marina and have given 16
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Marina the growth opportunity of a lifetime! The skills she acquired during this past school year will impact her for the rest of her life.” Fellow host Tara Johanneson echoes that sentiment, saying, “Choosing to host international students has honestly been one of the best decisions we have ever made. We wanted our children to experience the world, yet wouldn’t be able to take them everywhere, so instead we decided to bring the world to them. It has really helped us be open-minded, see things through different perspectives, appreciate cultural differences, and instilled in us a desire to continue learning more. We would encourage everyone to give hosting a try... it’s worth it!” Baack feels that one of the most significant benefits of the foreign exchange experience is that host families gain another family member. Often, host families stay in contact with their students after they’ve left; some even go back and forth to visit each other. She adds that when families include children, they learn about other countries, cultures, and ways of living while teaching the student about the culture in the U.S. It gives their children a global mindset and an education they can’t get from a textbook. Lastly, Baack talks about the changes the experience makes within participants, as she comments, “Since people tend to fear what they don’t understand, with this experience, there is a greater understanding of differences among people, which leads to greater empathy.”
