Submitted by the American Field Service

Families in the San Juan Islands can help build bridges of intercultural understanding by sharing their homes and daily life with exchange students. American Field Service is now looking for host families for high school exchange students coming from more than 90 countries in August and September.

Each year, AFS welcomes more than 2,200 international students to the U.S. These are outstanding young people who were selected in their home countries to study in U.S. high schools and are eager to experience what it’s like to live in America. Sharing daily life with a teenager from another country and culture is a rich and rewarding experience and is a wonderful way to bring more understanding into the world.

“It really boils down to that we all just want to raise our families the best way we can,” said current AFS host parent Kate Weber. “Taking away that ‘us versus them’ mentality and putting it into ‘we’re all in this together, how can we live harmoniously and accept and learn from each other’ makes you realize we’re all just trying to achieve the same goal.”

Host families provide a bed and meals, share their daily lives with students, and help guide and support students as they would their own children. Families and their hosted students receive ongoing support from AFS staff and experienced, local volunteers.

Families in the San Juan Islands interested in learning more about hosting an international exchange student, reading incoming student bios, and more can contact Anna Guthrie, AFS hosting coordinator, at aguthrie@afsusa.org or 206-639-8809.

AFS has been involved in international student exchange for over 70 years. Each year, AFS-USA sends about 1,000 U.S. students abroad, provides more than $4 million in scholarships and financial aid, and welcomes over 2,000 international high school students.