By Theresa Armstrong

Reporter

tdunn@gcnewsgazette.com

Grayson County students are introduced to the culture from other countries through the local foreign exchange program.

The high school will accept as many as five students from the E.F. Foundation for foreign study but the problem local coordinator, LaShawn Hack, has found is that local host families are hard to come by.

The qualifications to be a host family are simple. Host parents must be 25 or older, have an extra bedroom in the home for the student, be able to financially support the student and be able to pass an official criminal background checks.

International students do come with their own spending money as well money for items like clothing, souvenirs and entertainment.

The foreign study program gives a teen the ability to see the many sides of American life from the inside and immerse themself in the culture.

“I think this it is good for Grayson County to open up the community to people of different cultures,” said Hack. “And we are able to be exposed to other cultures and customs as well.”

Many host families have found the exchange to go both ways, the international students learns of American Culture and the students share many values and beliefs from their own country with the host family.

The exchange students are part of the E. F. Foundation for foreign study, which is a nonprofit organization that matches talented high school exchange students from around the world with American host families across the United States.

The program works with a local coordinator who helps match families and students based on shared interests, enrolls students in local school and supports both the students and the host families throughout the school year.

Qualified students have under gone a rigorous screening process before being accepted into the program. The student is selected based on maturity, adaptability and academic motivation. To be eligible the student must be in a junior or senior in high school.

The host family fills out an application with information such as where the family lives and religion preference and what activities the families enjoy.

Then the coordinator will visit the home and a student is selected. Once the student is selected the student and family are put in contact.

Near the end of July the teen arrives to begin his or her year in America. The coordinator may host a pizza party or a cookout for all the local families and they will stay in contact with each family throughout the year.

“The best way to make sure things go smoothly is communication,” said Hack. “If the family rules are discussed up front then things go better.”

The exchange program builds bridges with families from other countries that last a life time.

“I went to Columbia and visited with one of our student’s family,” said former coordinator and host Carolyn Thomason. “We have gotten very close with this family and next year we will host the younger brother in the family.

“He will be the first boy we host,” added Thomason. “We will add him to the wall where we have a picture of all 14 girls we have hosted.”

“One of the best things about this program is that you build a relationship with a child from another country that may last a lifetime,” said Hack.