Committee for Safety of Foreign Exchange Students
Advocating for the health, safety and welfare of all exchange students
Note from CSFES:
Where crimes are committed they must be reported. The stories must raise public awareness and serve to protect other children. Public awareness through the media is the most powerful tool we have to educate the public.
CSFES is currently in the process of converting the reports which appear on the 'Reports of Abuse' page by the year they were reported.
(CSFES is currently in the process of updating page -- thank you for your patience)
NEWS 2004
Exchange students looking for good home
By Jo Ciavaglia, The Intelligencer (Doylestown, PA)
September 4, 2004
They came here to learn about American culture. All they need is a family willing to teach them.
Dottie McCaa is anxious to get rid of her unexpected house guest.
Don't get her wong - she adores the kid. he cooks and he loves basketball and can't wait to see the Philadelphia 76ers play,.
But she'd like him to find a nice American family of his own to live
with. make that two families, one for her Ali and another for the
other Ali, who are both here to learn about American culture.
Ali from Kuwait and Ali from Yemen arrived in the United States last
month expecting to live with host families in the Bristol Township and
Pennsbury school districts for a year. But changes in job
circumstances for both families led to last-minute cancellations.,
So now the guys are stuck. If they don't find families here soon they'll either go elsewhere or back home.
The teens are part of AYUSA International, a foreign exchange program
that brings kids from more than 100 nations to the United States for
six months to a year. The program doesn't allow the students' last
names to be used.
The two Alis belong to a special program called Youth Exchange and
Study, an initiative started last year by the Department of State to
bring 15- and 16-year-old teens from mostly Muslim nations to the
United States for a year to bring understanding between the cultures.
The teens live with American families to learn about American culture
and teach the families about their culture. They also perform
community service and talk to students about their culture. The
schools that accept the students get a $3,000 language program in
Arabic, which they can use as an after-school club.
McCaa has 15-year-old Ali from Kuwait living with her for now. The
16-year-old from Yemen is living temporarily with another AYUSA
representative.
It's unusual for a host family to back out after a student has arrived, McCaa said.
Both Alis are fluent in English and don't eat pork. The 16-year-old is
the oldest of four children, received academic awards and likes
swimming, basketball, computers and studying. He's a good cook who has
made dinner for the McCaa family.
"They're normal teenagers," McCaa said.
Students in the exchange program have their own spending money and 100
percent insurance coverage. Host families provide a bed and meals.
McCaa would like to see both Alis remain here.
"It opens up the world to what those nations and the world are really like," she said.
Jo Ciavaglia can be reached at (215) 949-4181 or jciavaglia@phillyBurbs.com.
Copyright, 2004, The Intelligencer
Student Exchange Agency:
AYUSA International
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Foreign Students Arrive in Boise
August 9, 2004
By Stephanie Eddy, Staff
Idaho Statesman, The (Boise, ID)
But program organizers still need families to host some exchange students.
Foreign exchange students from Morocco, Syria and Lebanon arrived in
Boise on Saturday as part of AYUSA International, a non-profit student
education organization that aims to promote peace and understanding
through international friendship.
But at least one of the new arrivals, 15-year-old Mohammad Al-Mawed
from Syria, has not yet been assigned a permanent home for the school
year. Organizers are seeking help in placing Mohammad, along with
several other students who will arrive later this month.
Caldwell-based Northwest Services is facing a similar problem.
Arrangements have been made for exchange students from Germany and
Japan to arrive soon, but six to eight host families are still needed.
"We have four students flying into Boise in the next two weeks who do
not have an identified host family. The students will need to stay in
a temporary home, usually with a AYUSA representative." said Jodi
Miller, AYUSA International regional director.
"The difficulty is that the students will not be able to start school
on time because the reps do not live in the areas where school slots
are available," Miller said.
Host families provide their exchange student with a room (it can be
shared) and dinner at night. Students have their own spending money
foro necessities and pay for school lunches; they also have medical
cards. Hosts are not expected to entertain the student, but they
should involve the student in normal family activities and events.
Most students stay the entire school year.
Arranging for host families can be challenging, but opening your home
to an exchange student is not limited to those with high school-age
children. A family can also host more than one student as long as the
students are from different countries.
"We have had inquiries from single people, and that has worked out well
-- not so much men, but a single woman may want to host a student, NW
Services Director Maralyn Murdock said, "We dont' discount older people
either."
During the past 20 years, Murdock has helped place about 123 students in Treasure Valley homes.
"It's one of the most wonderful things you could ever do," she said.
"Host families provide room and board and tender loving care for the
extent of the stay."
Both Murdock and Miller said they often hear heart-warming stories from
host families who establish long-term relationships with the visiting
teens and sometimes visit the students in their home country.
"International friendships as well as mutual learning can occur through
this unique experience," Miller said. "One prior host family told me
that they were flown to see their former exchange student in Japan, by
the student, for his wedding years later -- that's how strong their
relationship ties were.
"Americans, overall, are not aas open to cultural experiences --
especially one of this sort," she said. "We really want to challenge
and encourage area residents to open their lives to this wonderful
opportunity."
Student Exchange Agency: AYUSA International and Northwest Services
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EXCHANGE STUDENTS NEED HOST FAMILIES
August 3, 2004
Times Leader, The (Wilkes Barre, PA)
Four exchange students from Japan, Ecuador, Germany and Taiwan are in need of host families.
The students are scheduled to arrive by Aug. 14 as part of the Academic
Year in the U.S.A. program. The students had been placed in homes, but
because of unforeseen circumstances, those families cannot host them.
AYUSA students are selected based on their maturity, flexibility,
achievements, civic responsibility and motivation to learn about
American culture. The students have medical insurance, their own
spending money and speak English.
Host families are asked to provide food, a bed (not necessarily in a
private room) and a loving home environment. For more information,
call Bonnie Siegfried at 344-3402 or 840-4634 or e-mail her at
BDSsiegfried@aol.com.
Student Exchange Agency: Academic Year in the U.S.A. (AYUSA)
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VETERINARIAN IS CHARGED WITH SEXUALLY ABUSING BOY
by Barbara Bell, Special to Tribune, July 28, 2004
FOREIGN STUDENTS ARRIVE IN BOISE, BUT PROGRAM ORGANIZERS
A veterinarian and Rotary Club exchange student coordinator who is charged with six counts of criminal sexual abuse is expected to surrender. Dillon, exchange student coordinator...molested the boy, a student from Europe, three times from January until May. This student was from Denmark.
Student exchange organization: Rotary
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JOBS FOR STRANDED RUSSIAN STUDENTS
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, June 9, 2004
"These students were victimized beyond belief," St. Augustine Beach Mayor Frank Charles said.
The students traveled to the United States through an international exchange program called The Center for Cultural Interchange. Each of the students paid $2,500 for the trip, which was supposed to give them work experience in the United States.
Eighteen of the students were found crowded into two unfurnished two-bedroom apartments without food Friday by the St. Augustine Beach Police and the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office. More arrived Monday, bringing the total to about 30.
Student exchange organization:Center for Cultural Interchange
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Sexual abuse uncovered in Rotary exchange student programmes
Reporter: Toni Hassan
PM
August 19, 2003
Student Exchange Agency: Rotary