Written by: Wendy Bauman, Agricultural Communication and Marketing This summer, I served as a group leader at Welcome Days, which is a program that is part of Education First (EF) High School Exchange Year (HSEY). EF is an international education company and has many branches, one of which is High School Exchange Year. High School Exchange Year gives students from 13 different countries in Europe and Asia the opportunity to have an exchange year in the United States. I spent my summer in Thornwood, NY and interacted with more than 1,000 high school exchange students that came through our program. Welcome Days is the first stop on a student’s exchange year. After departing their home country, they fly into Newark International Airport or John F. Kennedy International Airport and EF Welcome Days staff greet them. From the airport, students are transported back to EF Academy where Welcome Days is based. As the week continues, students engage in activities throughout campus that discuss and facilitate learning about cultural exchange, living with a host family, making friends in a new country, and American traditions. This preparation also gives students the chance to meet students going to their same state. The quantity of students at Welcome Days varies each week, with the lowest amount being 150 to the highest at 475. As a group leader, I was responsible for 10-25 students all going to the same state and served as their facilitator and key resource on campus. Following the classroom day, students experience New York City and an American homecoming. Group leaders and ambassadors led students through New York City to visit major destinations including Central Park, the Rockefeller Center, Bryant Park, and Times Square. Upon returning from New York City, students are exposed to American homecoming festivities complete with games, American junk food, a homecoming dance, costume contests, and team spirit activities. The next day, students are brought to the airport to fly to meet their host families. One of the greatest takeaways from my summer in Thornwood was the connections I made with fellow staff members. Three groups of people make up the staff and include senior staff, group leaders, and ambassadors. Senior staff are full-time EF employees from various locations in the United States and serve as incredible mentors who are extremely knowledgeable about the programming of EF HSEY and Welcome Days. Group leaders are typically American college students that serve as students’ point person during the Welcome Days experience. Ambassadors are foreign exchange students who have completed their exchange year and are essentially the “hype people” of Welcome Days. They share their experiences as exchange students and provide maximum energy during airport days, classroom experiences, and visits to New York City. The people in the photo above became a second family to me during my time in New York. There is an unbelievable amount of bonding that takes place in the early hours of the morning on airport days, the late evenings doing bed checks, the stress that comes from bed-making and challenging students, and the exhaustion that comes from four 14-hour days.
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Written by: Megan Slater, Agricultural Communication and Marketing This summer and fall I had the privilege of working with Anoka and Dakota County 4-H. As an intern for the 4-H program I ran several activities such as summer outreach programs, recruitment events, and of course, getting ready for the County Fair! The biggest role I had with Anoka County was developing my own programming about Polymers to deliver at a low-income housing site. I had to coordinate lessons, partner with an Extension Nutrition Educator, and coordinate food for the participants every week. I was fortunate enough to gain experience in two different counties, one more rural and the other urban. This demonstrated to me how inclusive the 4-H program is and how many youth it engages. With this diversity, I was able to work with youth from several backgrounds from kindergarten through their first year of college. My biggest takeaway from this experience is that in order to grow, you need to step out of your comfort zone. I struggled with reverting back to the way that things were always done in the county program that I grew up in, and here I was working in two completely different counties. I learned that just because something has always been done a certain way, it does not necessarily mean it is the right way. I am so thankful to have had two supportive programs and staff to work with for the last seven months! |
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January 2020
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