VOICE ONE: Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Bob Doughty. VOICE TWO: And I'm Faith Lapidus. This week on our program, we talk about foreign exchange students in the (MUSIC) VOICE ONE: More than twenty-nine thousand foreign exchange students attended American high schools last Foreign exchange students get the chance to learn more about a culture and its people. They make new The way many describe it, the experience is exciting and frightening at the same time. VOICE TWO: In the past, exchange students usually had limited contact with their host families before meeting them. E-mail and cell phones also make it easier for the students to keep in contact with their own families VOICE ONE:
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VOANews.com30 March 200810News Leadership Award
______________________________________________________________________________
Advocate for city exchange students says order defies free speech, June 26, 2008, The Oklahoman
By Randy Ellis
Staff Writer
_____________________________________________________________________________
FAYETTEVILLE : Agency dumps coordinators of foreign teens
BY ROBERT J. SMITH, Northwest Arkansas' News Source, June 3, 2008
"Education First Foundation of Foreign Study on Monday fired a Fayetteville couple in charge of finding
host families for foreign exchange students arriving in Arkansas."
Read the full story here:
http://www.nwanews.com/adg/News/227602/
Copyright (c) 2001-2008 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc. All rights reserved.
You will read, "State Department investigators learned that EF Foundation failed to ensure
that foreign exchange students had appropriate host families and homes before they arrived
in the U. S. The foundation also allowed some students to live in the Drummond home, a
violation of federal regulations that forbid company representatives from serving as a student's
host family, State Department officials said."
Student Exchange Agency: Education First Foundation of Foreign Study (EF)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Want to Be a Foreign Exchange Student? First
Do Some Homework
VOANews.com
30 March 2008
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United States.
year. The State Department says the teenagers came from one hundred nine countries.
friends and experience new places. But they can also experience problems being far from home, among
people they do not know and may not understand.
But times have changed. Today, exchange students may know a lot about their host family before they
ever leave home. E-mails go back and forth; pictures of families, homes and pets are shared.
back home.
Exchange groups are supposed to provide a contact person, or liaison, to help students in case they
Some exchange students attending high schools in Virginia
have any problems.
This is what happened with a boy from Argentina we'll call Juan Carlos.
Juan Carlos liked sports; his American host family did not. He liked to go out with friends; his host parents
did not approve. And they did not think he was doing well enough in school: he was getting average
grades. The host parents discussed these issues with his liaison.
And the solution? A new family was found for Juan Carlos. The new family included two boys who played
soccer on local teams. Juan Carlos joined those teams and was much happier with his new family. Not
only that, his grades improved.
(MUSIC)
VOICE TWO:
Exchange students have to speak English well enough to attend an American high school. But some
students find it takes weeks or months for them to understand everything they read or hear.
One girl from Switzerland told her exchange group that some students at her American high school made
fun of her accent. An exchange volunteer asked how many languages she spoke. The girl said her native
language was Swiss-German and she also spoke Italian, French, English and Spanish.
The volunteer had this advice: Tell those students that you have an accent in four of the five languages
you speak. And then ask them how many languages they speak. The majority of Americans speak only
English.
VOICE ONE:
Seventeen-year-old Nadia Gerstgrasser is from Italy. Nadia says being a foreign exchange student is not
always easy.
NADIA GERSTGRASSER: "Like the language, you think it's going to be hard, but you don't know how it is in
real life when people don't understand you and how hard it can be even to order a hamburger. When a
waiter asked me the first time how I wanted it done, I said 'cooked' and he was like 'yeah, I know, but
how,' and I said 'on my plate,' and everybody started laughing. Stuff like that. It can embarrass you, but
that's just the way you learn English. Now I laugh about it, but back then I was really embarrassed."
VOICE TWO:
Nadia is living with a family in Alexandria, Virginia, through the end of June. She is attending a Fairfax
County high school with more than one thousand seven hundred students. Nineteen percent of them are
limited English speakers. She says that surprised her -- finding so many different ethnic groups.
NADIA GERSTGRASSER: " You know, I was expecting all Americans ... like, I knew there was black people,
white people, but I didn't know there was a lot of Hispanics, Asian kids at my school. And, yeah, it was
surprising but positive."
VOICE ONE:
American high schools come in small, medium, large and extra large. They can have three, four, even five
thousand students. It is easy to feel lost at first in a huge building and moving from class to class.
Changing classrooms might also be a new experience for exchange students. Some students come from
countries where the teachers move from room to room, not the students.
(MUSIC)
VOICE TWO:
More than one hundred organizations are involved in the State Department's Exchange Visitor Program for
secondary school students. These groups are responsible for choosing, placing and supervising exchange
students.
In many cases, families pay an organization to place their child with an American family and supervise
their time in the United States.
In the case of Rotary International, local Rotary clubs pay some of the expenses of exchange students.
The clubs place students with three different families during the school year.
VOICE ONE:
As of last year there were twelve schools and school districts involved in the State Department program.
Schools often want foreign exchange students as a way to increase the diversity of their student population.
These programs may be true exchanges. A student from the school goes to a foreign country for a school
year while a foreign student comes to the United States.
VOICE TWO:
Secondary-school exchange students normally come to the United States with J-One visas provided by the
State Department. Some, however, come with an F-One study visa from the Department of Homeland
Security. But an F-One visa does not provide the same protections as a J-One visa.
These protections include making sure all adults in host families have been checked for criminal records.
Another protection is making sure exchange students have placements waiting for them in American schools.
VOICE ONE:
The Committee for Safety of Foreign Exchange Students is a nonprofit organization in California. It works
to strengthen protections for exchange students in the United States and around the world.
Sally Smith is a family law attorney who works with the committee. She says exchange students should
know how to report any cases of sexual abuse or other crimes. In the United States, the number to call
for police or other emergency services is nine-one-one.
Sally Smith advises parents of teens who are considering an exchange program to discuss the possible
dangers with the sponsoring group. Exchange students should never leave home without knowing who
their host family will be, and that the family has been investigated.
Sally Smith notes that the rules in the United States do not say how a criminal background check must
be carried out. The Committee for Safety of Foreign Exchange Students wants the government to
require criminal checks based on fingerprint records.
A State Department representative tells us that officials are now studying the possibility of strengthening
the requirements for background checks. But she says the details are not known at this time.
VOICE TWO:
The State Department has programs to bring exchange students to the United States from different
areas of the world. One program, for example, is for German teenagers. Another is for students from
countries of the former Soviet Union. Other programs offer exchanges for students in Serbia and
Montenegro and countries with large Muslim populations.
VOICE ONE:
Gauri Noolkar from India is in Virginia as part of the State Department's Youth Exchange and Study, or YES,
program. We'll let her explain it:
GAURI NOOLKAR: "The students in the YES program, their expenses are basically covered by the State
Department of this country, and it is for fostering friendship between America and Middle East and Asian
counties. It is based on merit and talent, and they cover all our expenses and in return we are expected
to teach people over here about our cultures and then go back and teach our people about American
culture."
Seventeen-year-old Gauri is also attending a public high school in Fairfax County. And like Nadia from Italy,
Gauri says she, too, was surprised by the ethnic diversity she has seen in the United States.
GAURI NOOLKAR: "Another surprising thing was even though it is a very individualistic society, there is a
notion that Americans just live for themselves. But I realize that over here they are very helpful and
nobody turns you down. If you ask for help, you do get it."
VOICE TWO:
To become an exchange student at an American high school, students must have completed no more than
eleven years of school, and done well. They must be between the ages of fifteen and eighteen and a half.
They must also speak English well. And they must agree to accept the rules of the exchange program and
their host families.
Host families are supposed to receive training in hosting an exchange student. Host families do not get paid,
but they get a fifty dollar tax deduction for each month the student lives in their home.
VOICE ONE:
Nadia Gerstgrasser has this advice for students considering a foreign exchange:
NADIA GERSTGRASSER: "You should not leave your country thinking 'Oh, wow, cool, a year of holiday, I'm
not going to do anything, it's going to be fun, everything is just going to be exciting,' because it's also hard.
But at the same time it's so cool. You're gonna start liking it. It's worth it. You should try."
Going to a foreign country to live with complete strangers is not for everyone. But many who have done it
say the experience taught them a lot about the world and about themselves.
(MUSIC)
VOICE TWO:
Our program was written by Nancy Steinbach and produced by Dana Demange. I'm Faith Lapidus.
VOICE ONE:
And I'm Bob Doughty. For transcripts, MP3s and podcasts of our programs, go to voaspecialenglish.com.
Join us again next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tyler Hill's parents allege he pleaded for help after mountain Tyler Hill Help came too late. He died at the Japanese Red Cross Medical Center, with his family unaware and half a Now his parents, Sheryl and Allen Hill of Mound allege in a wrongful death lawsuit filed in Hennepin County "My biggest fear is that no one will know the truth," said Sheryl Hill on Monday. In addition to reimbursement for the $6,750 paid for the two-week trip, the family seeks unspecified damages. They say their son's death could have easily been prevented by trip leaders who knew he was diabetic but failed The family names the Ambassadors Group, a corporation, as well as individuals who were "delegation leaders" Sheryl Hill sobbed as she talked about her son, an experienced world traveler. When he died, he had just She said Tyler suffered cerebral and cardiac edema after climbing Fuji. He asked for help, but instead was left His kidneys, his heart and his brain were failing, his mother said. "It's a very slow, torturous death," she said. "Our goal is to herald Tyler's story around the world so this will not happen to another family," Sheryl Hill said. The president of the People to People Student Ambassadors Program, Jeff Thomas, said in a statement that "We are deeply saddened by the death of Tyler Hill last summer and the entire People to People Ambassador Health problems disclosed Before Tyler Hill went to Japan, the family said, they disclosed that he had Type I diabetes and complex Sheryl Hill said he was extremely careful about managing his diabetes and did not take his health for granted. The group's website includes a picture of former President Dwight D. Eisenhower, described as the organization's The Hills also take issue with the notion that students are nominated for the "honor" to be in the program but said The ambassador website encourages students to "find out for yourself how People to People Student The People to People website reported that students have traveled to all seven continents through the program. Rochelle Olson • 612-673-1747
From Korea to Delano with Tiger spirit, January 28, 2008
Jen Bakken
Delano Herald Journal
http://www.herald-journal.com/archives/2008/stories/jb.html.
Student Exchange Agency: Council for Educational Travel, USA (CETUSA)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mound family sues over son's death in Japan
climbing but that trip leaders failed to respond in time.
By ROCHELLE OLSON, Star Tribune Last update: January 28, 2008 - 11:03 PM 
world away.
that Tyler's life could have been saved if he had received immediate medical attention.
to heed his calls for help. The family also alleges fraud, breach of contract and false advertising, among other
things.
for failing to "obtain timely and appropriate help" for Tyler Hill "as promised."
finished his sophomore year at Mound Westonka High School. He was an MVP rugby player, a tight end in
football, a winger in hockey and a scuba diver.
alone in his room for hours, the lawsuit said.
the program is reviewing the lawsuit and cannot comment at this time.
Program organization continues to grieve for his family," the statement said.
migraines. The Hills were reassured that People to People set the ''gold standard'' for safety with a solid
record and a 24-hour response team should any child become severely ill, the lawsuit said.
founder. But the Hills challenge the claim, saying Eisenhower neither founded nor served as chairman of the
organization. The president's granddaughter sold the rights to the name to Ambassador Group International for
an undisclosed amount of money around 2002, the family said.
they are solicited through mass mailing lists.
Ambassador Programs can introduce you to a world of exciting special-access experiences and incredible
adventures that no other summer program or family vacation can provide."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
to protect foreign exchange students.
Rule R277-612. Foreign Exchange Students. As in effect on December 1, 2007
Table of Contents
- R277-612-1. Definitions.
- R277-612-2. Authority and Purpose.
- R277-612-3. Foreign Exchange Student Cap.
- R277-612-4. School District Policy for Working with Foreign Exchange Student Agencies and Protecting Foreign Exchange Students and Utah Students.
- KEY
- Date of Enactment or Last Substantive Amendment
- Authorizing, Implemented, or Interpreted Law
R277-612-1. Definitions.
school's governing board, subject to the limitation of Section 53A-2-206(2).
R277-612-2. Authority and Purpose.
in the Board, Section 53A-2-206(2) which directs the Board to make rules to administer the cap on the number of foreign exchange
students for purposes of apportioning state monies for the students, and Section 53A- 1-401(3) which allows the Board to adopt
rules in accordance with its responsibilities.
B. The purpose of this rule is to administer the cap on the number of foreign exchange students that may be counted by school
districts and charter schools for state funding. An additional purpose of the rule is to provide guidance to school districts and charter
schools in working with exchange student agencies and accepting foreign exchange students to provide for safety and fairness to the
exchange students and Utah public school students.
R277-612-3. Foreign Exchange Student Cap.
costs of educating foreign exchange students who meet all criteria of the law.
B. School districts and charter schools are encouraged to enroll foreign exchange students and report those enrollment numbers
annually to the USOE in the October 1 Superintendents' Report.
C. When the number of reported foreign exchange students reaches 250 in a school year, the USOE may notify school districts of
quotas in enrolling foreign exchange students or may seek funding for a USOE employee to promote the program among school
districts and charter schools and ensure that all requirements of the law are satisfied by foreign exchange student agencies, foreign
exchange students, school districts and charter schools.
D. School districts and charter schools shall include in their report to the USOE only foreign exchange students that satisfy all
requirements of 53A-2-206(6) and school district/charter school policies. School districts/charter schools may enroll foreign exchange
students who do not qualify for state monies and pay the costs of those students with other school district/charter school funds
or charge the students tuition.
R277-612-4. School District Policy for Working with Foreign Exchange Student Agencies and Protecting Foreign Exchange
Students and Utah Students.
of 53A-2-206(6) in addition to other provisions which create a safe environment for foreign exchange students and school
district/charter school students.
B. Each school district/charter school shall, prior to accepting students through the foreign exchange student agency, require
and maintain from each foreign exchange student entity from which the district/charter school accepts students, a sworn
affidavit of compliance that the agency has complied with all applicable policies of the local board of education or the charter
school including the following:
(1) agency has complied with all applicable policies of the local board of education/charter school governing board;
of each household where foreign exchange students will reside and the information has been reviewed and concerns satisfied
by an appropriate school district employee;
under Subsection 76-5-406(10) for persons who are in a position of special trust;
student's stay in Utah;
burden upon the public schools or other public agencies;
representatives and others who could be called at any time if a serious problem occurs; and
which unreasonably endanger the student's welfare.
C. Each school district/charter school that accepts foreign exchange students shall provide each approved foreign exchange student
agency with a list of names and telephone numbers of individuals not associated with the agency who could be called by an exchange
student in the event of a serious problem.
D. The agency shall make a copy of the list provided by the school district/charter school to each foreign exchange student in the
student's native language.
--------------------
Lawmakers endorse study of foreign exchange student placement
in Arkansas
Saturday, Dec 22, 2007
By Rob Moritz
Arkansas News Bureau
LITTLE ROCK - The Legislative Council on Friday endorsed a proposal to study placement of foreign
exchange students with host families in Arkansas.
Sen. Sue Madison, D-Fayetteville, said she proposed the study after receiving complaints that some
foreign exchange students were being placed in homes with families ill-equipped to take care of them.
Madison also noted recent reports that the U.S. State Department was investigating complaints about
where a Massachusetts company had placed some foreign exchange students arriving in Arkansas.
That investigation, involving the Education First Foundation for Foreign Study and its Fayetteville
coordinators, involves allegations that exchange students stayed at the homes of the coordinators.
Federal regulations prohibit employees of a foreign exchange company from serving as both a host
family and area supervisor for a student.
Madison's proposal asks the Senate Interim Committee on Children and Youth to study the issue and
report its findings to Legislative Council.
"Some parents came to me about problems they've seen in Northwest Arkansas," Madison said Friday,
also noting problems she heard of in Clarksville and Hot Springs.
In Clarksville, Madison said, a student from Korea was placed with a family living in low-income housing.
The student would write home asking her parents for money to help feed her host family, she said.
"At that point, she asked to be moved to another family and representatives from the company set up
a table outside a Wal-Mart to recruit her another family," Madison said. "They found her another family
and this time the male of the household was arrested on a drug charge."
The State Department, which currently has oversight authority, does not have adequate staff to oversee
the foreign exchange program, Madison said. California has enacted a law that gives its attorney general's
office some oversight authority, she said.
The California law requires any person or group that arranges the placement of foreign exchange students
in California elementary, junior high or high schools to register with the attorney general's office before
making the placement.
Copyright © Arkansas News Bureau, 2003 - 2006
------------------------------------------------
News: State to Examine Foreign Exchange Student Program TV clip re Arkansas
©2007 Nexstar Broadcasting. All Rights Reserved.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Foreign exchange programs to the
By Stefan M Hogan, December 12, 2007, The Slovak Spectator
Spectator staff
THE CASE of Roland Gomory, a 17-year-old Slovak currently studying in
recently compelled The Slovak Spectator to investigate allegations that his safety and
privacy were in jeopardy.
The conclusion reached last week was that an employee of the organization sponsoring Gomory's
stay in the
but that Gomory was never put at significant risk.
Nonetheless, the case inspired the Spectator to conduct a general review of the program that
brings foreign exchange students to the
A close call
Gomory is sponsored by the Council on International Educational Exchange (CIEE), a
non-profit organization based in
foreign exchange programs since 1947. It currently supervises about 50,000 program
participants each year.
On December 3, The Slovak Spectator was informed by the Committee for the Safety of
Foreign Exchange Students (CSFES), a California-based watchdog agency, that an
advertisement about Gomory had been posted on the popular website Craigslist.com on
November 19 by a CIEE employee.
The ad was entitled "Boy Who Loves Fashion Needs a Host Family" and did not include
Gomory's name, describing him instead only as "a foreign exchange student from
who comes from a wealthy family, so he LOVES to go shopping for clothes."
More troublingly, the advertisement included an offer to send Gomory's personal profile
upon request, as well as a sentence that could easily be misinterpreted: "He is very
compliant and will do anything you ask."
To test CIEE's screening process, the CSFES promptly requested Gomory's profile from the
e-mail address listed on the ad, writing only "When you get a moment, might you send me
the student from
containing a mountain of sensitive personal data, including Gomory's name, birth date,
several pictures and copies of his visa to the
CIEE has since conducted its own investigation, which resulted in the dismissal of the
employee responsible for the ad.
"It was an error that will not be allowed to be repeated," Stevan Trooboff, CIEE's
President and CEO, told The Slovak Spectator.
Oversight through the J visa program
Gomory, like thousands of foreigners each year, was in the
Exchange Visitor Program. Established in 1961 by the provisions of the Mutual Education
and Cultural Exchange Act, the program is comprised of 15 categories of exchange (one of
which is for high school students) that qualify visitors for a J visa, allowing them to
stay in the
But before receiving a J visa, an applicant must be sponsored by one of the 1,500 entities
designated by the US Department of State to conduct exchange programs. These entities
include colleges/universities, government agencies, non-profit and private sector
organizations.
"To become a sponsor, the organizations must meet a number of specific regulatory
requirements for designation as set forth in (federal law)," Catherine L. Stearns,
Spokesperson for the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the Department of State,
told The Slovak Spectator. "In addition, they must have a minimum of one year experience
in international exchange, and must demonstrate financial solvency necessary to administer
a program."
Students are matched with sponsors through an agent, often their school or a travel agency
in their home country.
Federal law requires that prior to arriving in the US, sponsors must provide students with
the name of the school they will attend, the name and contact information of the family
that will host them and information about the community in which they will live, Stearns
said.
As far as when and how the State Department investigates allegations of mistreatment or
error, Stearns responded: "The Department investigates any concern brought to our
attention.
Complaints can come from a variety of sources: a student, school, parent, host family,
etc."
And on the issue of using the internet to find host families, Stearns said: "The
Department regulations do not specifically address how host families are to be identified.
However, given recent concerns raised regarding the means by which sponsors are locating
host families, the Department is reviewing this matter."
CIEE and InterExchange
CIEE limits the age of its participants to just over 18 - 15 to 18.5, to be exact - which
makes screening host families especially important.
"There is a complex procedure for screening including a home interview, criminal
background checks and personal references checked by Local Staff," Trooboff from
CIEE told the Spectator.
"Many of the families who host participants are personally known by our Local Coordinators
who are charged with finding placements."
If the exchange students need assistance during their stay in
a safety net, Trooboff said.
"Each local coordinator files a monthly report on each student; how they're doing, etc.,
which means they are in regular contact with the student," he said. "We also check in
with schools and run a 24/7 help line that every student is reminded about in orientation
and in all written materials."
"Students who need help get help," he added. "We are proactive not just reactive."
Peter Fillo, a 24-year-old computer science student who went to
part of the Work and Travel Program, another category in the Exchange Visitor Program, had
a similar impression of his sponsor InterExchange, a New York-based non-profit
organization.
Because Fillo was older than 18.5, he was given the option of finding accommodation and
employment himself. During his three months in the
status, but did provide quick and effective assistance when he needed it.
"They were very nice, helpful and polite," he told the Spectator.
The role of parents
Both CIEE and the State Department stress the need for parents to stay involved in their
child's foreign exchange experience.
"Students and parents should contact the host family to make an introduction," Stearns
from the State Department said. "That's why they are provided with that information."
Trooboff from CIEE said: "All parents worry about their children, and they should.
However, by working with their agents in the home country, picking one that has a good
partner in the US and keeping in touch their child and host family, they too can be part
of the process and help assure their children's welfare. We certainly understand their
concerns."
For more information on CIEE, visit www.ciee.org. For InterExchange, visit
www.interexchange.org.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Exchange group gets probe after teens
complain, by Robert J. Smith, December 9, 2007, Arkansas Democrat Gazette
"The U.S. State Department is investigating complaints about where a Massachusetts company places
foreign-exchange students arriving in Northwest Arkansas."
Read the full story here: http://www.nwanews.com/adg/News/210076/
Student Exchange Agency: EF Foundation
-----------------------------------
Foreign exchange program controversy
An Eyewitness News Exclusive
NEW YORK -- -- The U.S. State Department is investigating whether a major non-profit foreign exchange
agency violated regulations by not having proper homes in place for visiting students.
nowhere to go.
the sponsoring agency is supposed to have secured a home placement and a school placement for the year.
regulations. ASSE denies it.
summer, she welcomed Hee-Sung from Korea, to stay while he attended an English language camp in
Putnam County. She also took in Lenny from France -- both students would then go to a different,
permanent home for the school year.
several states, including New York.
And it was going on the third month," Michele said.
Japan, and one from France.
here for a month," Ira said.
done nothing. Federal regulations require that a school placement is secured before students arrive.
screened and secured host family, as well as a high school," Danelle Grijalva said.
in nine different states.
been a bait and switch program from the beginning."
love with them is a recipe for disaster," Danelle said.
house, then placed by ASSE with a family living in a mobile home on the side of the road in the Adirondacks.
But her parents, who paid more than $10,000 to the agency, had had enough.
compliance with all U.S. Department of State regulatory requirements governing its programs."
But with two children of their own, the family just could not keep the other students.
say they found families on their own without ASSE's help. The Agency claims as of a few weeks ago, all its
students had been placed.
Student Exchange Agency: ASSE International
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Pune girl is back home after abuse by US family
Mumbai News -- Mumbai Mirror Online Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Pune: Little did the 16-year-old Nikita Dhavle know when she left Pune for the US with dreams that she
would return home within three months with a fractured hand and a scarred mind.
Nakita, a bright student of a city school, selected under a cultural exchange programme of American
Field Service (AFS), landed in the state of Minnesota in the first week of August unaware of the hostility
that awaited her in the form of the host famiy in Pipestone. "I was asked to do cleaning of kitchen,
dining room, wash clothes of the entire family, clean utensils, mow the lawn. I also cleaned up the barn
where horses were kept," the girl, who returned to India after a stotuous stay on October 26, said.
Nikita had joined the Raff family in Piepstone after the AFS screening of the host. Two weeks later, she
was shocked when the host's teenaged Ryan, on probation for drunken driving, returned home. "I had
not been told about this boy. He abused me."
Nikita, who joined the Pipestone Central School to utilise her 11-month stay under the programme,
said: "I saw the boy and the mom argue and wrestle and each other on the floor."
A fall in the horse barn fractured her left hand. The Raffs took her to hospital to plaster it but did not care
to keep the follow-up dates with the doctor, Nikita recounted. She spoke to her parents in Pune and sent
an e-mail to AFS functionaries in Delhi urging them to bring her back.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
from ABC 7 News -
involving children.
lure other youngsters into his house and on family trips.
exchange student from Kuwait in August 2006. After that case came to light, a female relative
and male friend of Schwartz's son said he molested them when they were children.
fourth-degree sex offense.
judge gave him a punishment that exceeded the sentencing guidelines in the case.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 20, 2007
Host Families Needed Quickly
Camp to be Held Locally
By Scott Price
Contributing Writer
Eighteen foreign exchange students are scrambling to find area host families after their cultural camp plans
changed.
The camp, which was to be in Waxahachie, has been rescheduled for July 26 to Aug. 25 in Roanoke. All of the
students need nearby families for the cultural enrichment camp, which is designed to help the students learn
American culture and to brush up on their English.
The camp is sponsored by ASSE International Student Exchange Programs, which started by the Swedish
government in 1976 as the American-Scandinavian Student Exchange by the Swedish government but has
expanded to 31 participating countries.
Pam Bilton, an ASSE area coordinator, said the students looking for local host families include six students from
France, three from Japan, three from Taiwan, two from China, two from Germany and two from Mexico.
Bilton said a total of 39 students, most of whom have host families, will participate in the Roanoke camp. All are
proficient in English.
"They are all coming for the academic school year, but not all of them are staying in Texas," she said. "They
come a month early to go to the camp to practice their English and learn the culture."
The students will study in class four days a week and on the fifth day will go on an excursion to a nearby city.
The students also plan to volunteer one day at the Roanoke Senior Center, Bilton said.
Bilton, of Roanoke, said that she hopes host families can be found nearby in the Northwest school district and in
Southlake, Grapevine, Colleyville and Flower Mound. She said the experience is not only helpful to the students
but is a good way for families to have a brief experience with the foreign student exchange program.
In addition to the students who are scheduled to attend the camp in Roanoke, ASSE is still looking for area host
families for the 2007-2008 academic year.
Without host families, the students will not be able to participate in the exchange program this year.
"It is their dreams that will be shattered, if they can't come," Bilton said.
Bilton said the Lewisville School District has nine slots available for foreign exchange students, Northwest
High School has five slots, Argyle High School has one, and Carroll Senior High School also has one available.
This is Bilton's second year as a coordinator, and she is also hosting two students in her home. She said she
has been knocking on doors to spread the word about the need for host families.
"Just please help," Bilton said. "This is an emergency situation."
Bilton said the most pressing issue is to find host families during the camp in Roakoke. The students will arrive
in a week.
For information about hosting a student this summer or for the entire school year, contact Bilton at 817-430-4795.
To find out more about ASSE International Student Exchange Programs, go to www.asse.com.
Contact our newsroom:
Flower Mound Newsroom: 972-724-3280
Flower Mound Messenger Argyle Messenger
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Sun June 10, 2007, The Oklahoman
Unexpected surprises
Lorenz and fellow foreign exchange students Daniel Balser, 17, of Germany and Petr Dolecek, 17, of the Czech Republic told
The Oklahoman that Bayard Rustin provided them and three other exchange students with one bizarre surprise after another.
While Lorenz was dealing with cockroaches Balser and Dolecek were placed in Storrs' home.
Balser said he came to
But after arriving, he learned Storrs would be his host.
Balser said Storrs told him he was gay, but not being familiar with all the nuances of the language, he thought Storrs might be
saying that he was a "happy person.”
Balser said he realized Storrs was a homosexual after meeting his gay roommate.
"They didn't do anything to us. Just the feeling wasn't so cool,” he said.
Dolecek said he understood before he came to
The students said they had never heard of Bayard Rustin when the exchange program notified them that they would have an
opportunity to attend school there.
They said they looked up the school on the Internet, but about all they discovered was that Bayard Rustin was a private school
that embraced students from diverse social and racial backgrounds and received part of its funding from the
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
The Gates Foundation tie seemed promising.
"I thought it was a prestigious school,” Dolecek said, adding he also thought it might be high tech.
He was wrong.
An IBM employee who worked on the computers said some of them were so old they wouldn't load 10-year-old software. Storrs
said he bought the computers cheap as surplus property.
School moves
As for the school, students said they were surprised to discover it was located in a warehouse on E Reno Avenue. They were
even more surprised when officials packed up and moved the school a few weeks into the fall semester. The new location
at 726 Colbertson Drive is in a strip shopping center southeast of the state Capitol.
Jimmy Nix, the warehouse owner, said he was trying to evict Storrs when school officials moved.
"They were in there probably two or three months,” Nix said.
Nix said he received two bad checks from Storrs, along with a lot of excuses.
Other suppliers reported similar experiences.
And it wasn't just the suppliers who weren't being paid.
Former teachers told The Oklahoman they weren't, either, which prompted many of them to quit mid-semester.
"Most of the time, we were just sitting there doing nothing,” Balser said.
The students said they would have one morning class, then do whatever. Fights frequently broke out between students, they said.
The state Education Department never stepped in because it doesn't have oversight of private schools that don't seek
accreditation, said department spokeswoman Shelly Hickman.
Dolecek said he thought it was strange the school didn't have money to pay teachers because it bought thousands of dollars in
football equipment for a joint team with some charter schools.
The school still owes several thousand dollars on the equipment, an employee of the business that sold the equipment said.
Money problems
Storrs said Bayard Rustin is a private school that doesn't charge tuition. He admits money was a constant problem.
The school's two primary sources of funding were a $150,000 model schools grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
and federal money the school collected for doing after-school tutoring of
Exchange-student problems bring shake-up, by Randy Ellis, The Oklahoman, June 10, 2007
Student Exchange Agency: ASSE International
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Those were things they had to learn from experience. For complete story:
http://newsok.com/article/3064452
Student Exchange Agency: ASSE International
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