Coming to America

Host families sought for foreign exchange students

After years of encouragement to become a host parent for an exchange student, Jacksonville Mayor Gary Fletcher, center, agreed to host two 16-year-old boys: Pablo Yusteramos, left, of Spain and Benjamen Schelpers, right, of Germany. Fletcher said he wishes he would have said yes to the opportunity earlier.
After years of encouragement to become a host parent for an exchange student, Jacksonville Mayor Gary Fletcher, center, agreed to host two 16-year-old boys: Pablo Yusteramos, left, of Spain and Benjamen Schelpers, right, of Germany. Fletcher said he wishes he would have said yes to the opportunity earlier.

As the 2015-16 school year nears its close, some are already looking into ways to impact the lives of others in the forthcoming school year.

Student American International, a nonprofit student-exchange program, is seeking Arkansan host families for foreign exchange students, said representative Sharon Peterson of Jacksonville.

Peterson began her involvement with foreign-exchange students in 1988 after she became an empty nester and welcomed an Italian student into her home. As a Student American International representative, Peterson helps connect Arkansas families with 15- to 18-year-old high school students from around the world.

“We like to place them as soon as possible so the host families and the host students can communicate before they come,” she said.

Through Student American International, American families pick the student they wish to live with, and all students arrive with their own clothes, insurance and spending money. Each August, all foreign exchange students in the program go through an orientation in New York. The students, who are also in the program to become better English speakers, can either stay in America for a full year or half a year.

“We want the students to come here and learn about us and take back the good stuff,” she said. “We’re not here to change their mind about their country.”

Jacksonville Mayor Gary Fletcher, who has known Peterson for years, said it took a lot of time and encouragement before he finally agreed to be a host parent this school year.

“It’s something I always had an interest in doing, but I never had the courage or guts to pull the trigger on it,” he said.

At the end of August 2015, Fletcher and his wife welcomed two 16-year-old European students: Pablo Yusteramos of Spain and Benjamen Schelpers of Germany, who will both return to their home countries in five weeks.

Foreign exchange programs can be especially beneficial to Arkansans who are empty nesters or who live alone, Fletcher said.

“We’re reacquainting ourselves with what it’s like to have children in the house,” he said.

Fletcher said Yusteramos and Schelpers are well mannered and are involved in extracurricular activities. Fletcher said his family treats the students like any other member of the family.

“I’ve got a set of parents on the other side of the world that are trusting me to treat them that way,” he said.

Host families must undergo a background check and a reference check, along with having their home inspected. Host families cannot be on government aid, and exchange students can share a room but cannot share a bed with

anyone else.

Fletcher said that in preparation for an exchange student, families should consider cleaning out closet space to make the student feel more at home.

Fletcher said his exchange students have experienced many firsts through living in his household, such as tying a tie, driving a car and enjoying a Thanksgiving meal.

“I wish now, looking in hindsight, that I would have said yes earlier,” Fletcher said. “I robbed myself of a lot of

opportunity.”

Peterson said one host family later found a heartfelt note from the family’s exchange student about the great time the student had in America, and another exchange student helped his host dad build his new home.

“You never know what’s going to happen,” Peterson said.

Peterson, who has been a host parent too many times to count, has visited countries such as Australia, Brazil, Germany, France and Poland, and she said her time abroad has helped her relate to and understand foreign exchange students better. She said what some would call homesickness is actually culture shock.

“Depending on the country and on the student personally, it could happen within hours of them getting here to months,” she said. “When they start to adjust and feel close to their host parents, they feel — all this is emotional, not intellectual — they start to feel comfortable here and feel like a traitor to their country.”

In Arkansas, Peterson noted, the students will likely be more dependent on their host families for transportation.

“The biggest thing that happens when they come over here is they lose freedom because we don’t have mass transit,” she said.

Getting to know potential host families early on helps the process. Peterson said her background in selling life insurance has helped bring foreign exchange students to American families.

“You’ve got to ask 10 people to get one interested, and you’ve got to get 10 interested to get one host,” she said.

Fletcher said families shouldn’t be afraid to become host families, especially since the foreign students have to meet a set of standards to be in the program.

“The people I’ve talked to have all enjoyed their students,” he said. “I think I’ve ended up spending more time with them than I originally thought I would, but that’s because I wanted to.”

Staff writer Syd Hayman can be reached at (501) 244-4307 or shayman@arkansasonline.com.

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