Two years ago this month Utah’s Rotary Youth Exchange Committee was forced to send six amazing “worldwide ambassadors” home because of COVID-19. It broke their hearts. Today we’re proud to be – once again – preparing for in-person exchanges.
Behind the scenes our Rotary Youth Exchange committee has been soliciting interest from eligible high schoolers for participation in both long-term (a full year) and short term (6 to 8 weeks) exchanges. We have two students who are excited about spending a year abroad and eight students who will participate in our shorter term program. These students come from all over the state, as far north as North Ogden and as far south as Hurricane.
“For each of our long-term exchange students we bring in one student from abroad who lives in and attends school in the school district of the student who has left. We look for three different families to host during the year. This provides a diverse look at family life in Utah and means that the commitment a family makes to host a student is only for an approximate four-month period.
At present our two long-term outbound students originate from Highland and Wasatch High School. We now seek three families in each of these school districts to host. The exchange begins in August 2022 and continues to the end of the school year in June, 2023.
In addition to family participation, we need two Rotary clubs in or around these school districts to sponsor the outgoing student by assisting the incoming student with a $100 per month allowance while they are in our state.
Traditionally, we arrange outings for our foreign exchange students. In the past we’ve taken them to California to join in an orientation with other students from around the world or taken trips to Bear Lake, Lake Powell, Moab, Zions National Park, and Park City, among others. We will just have to see what this coming year brings!
These are just a few “nuggets of information” about a program your Rotary Youth Exchange committee is passionate about! If you talk to a family who has either hosted a student, or whose child has participated in an exchange, you will find that the experience can be life changing for both them, their children and the children that become part of their family for a lifetime.”
For information on outbound exchanges contact Aaron Lowe.
For information on inbound exchanges contact Glenn Artist
As Glenn Artist, our In-bound coordinator says – “My wife and I have no children of our own, but we now have kids all over the world!”