There are plenty of opportunities to make the upcoming school year a memorable one, and one of the more unique ways is being a host family for a foreign exchange student.
According to Hannah Levi, are representative with International Student Exchange, this is an opportunity available to families throughout the Ponte Vedra, Nocatee and the rest of St. Johns County.
Levi and her family have been hosts to several exchange students over the years, which led to her eventually becoming a representative as she got more and more involved with the process.
The benefits for the student are often the focus, but she quickly found out that it is not just the student who takes something from the experience, but instead it can be beneficial for everyone involved in some way or another.
“You expand your family’s worldview by exposing your family and community to other cultures,” Levi said. “Some kids here in America have never met anyone other than their personal circle, so it’s probably the first exchange student they’ve met. It can also give them a new perspective on American culture by seeing their daily life and community through a new set of eyes.”
Some of the additional benefits that come as a result of the foreign exchange student program is improved international diplomacy, improved communication skills and trying different cuisines.
Many times Levi has seen the cultivation of life-long friendships by the end of the program.
“Connecting with a young person from another culture will teach you and your children patience, compassion and curiosity,” Levi said. “Hosting can inspire your children to grow up with an open mind and learn lessons that are not often found in a classroom.”
For Levi, the experience was so rewarding that it has now become a yearly tradition each school year that they take part in.
“Hosting isn’t something I just do, it’s a lifestyle we have fallen in love with,” Levi said.
Although there is a certain commitment from the family who is serving as a student’s host, there is also a rather large commitment by the student, and that is something Levi has never lost sight of.
In fact, their determination is one of the many reasons why she and her family continue to offer up their home.
“The students are so grateful for the opportunity to see America as a life and not a vacation,” Levi said. “They leave everything they have ever known to come here for 10 months to build and create a life here to then have to leave it and go back home changed and not the same person.”
According to Levi, many students end up staying in contact with their families and even invite them to make the return trip and visit them in their home country.
Programs can run from five, 10 or 12 months depending on the situation and time frame that works best and although host families are volunteers, tax benefits can be provided as families can write off $50 per month/per student as a charitable giving tax deduction, according to Levi.
As a result, students arrive in August and January and to fill out an application or to find out more information about the program, go to iseusa.org/Florida.
ISE exchange students will speak English and will be 15 to 18 years old and in high school. The program services students from more than 40 countries around the world.
