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Happy Spring from AYA!
As the school year winds down, consider your plans for next year! AYA has wonderful students who are looking for the perfect host family. Hosting with AYA means working with an experienced and dedicated staff as well as receiving some benefits unique to AYA:
Open up your home to a foreign exchange student and gain so much in return! Call (800) 322-4678 ext. 5164 today to find out more about hosting, or visit www.academicyear.org. |
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 Kaicheng from China
DEM006
- Kaicheng is outgoing, funny, and hardworking.
- He lives with his mother and grandparents. They like to camp, climb, or go to music concerts.
- Kaicheng enjoys playing badminton, table tennis, and soccer, watching movies, and listening to music with his friends.
- Kaicheng's favorite subjects are Science, Math, Physics, and Chemistry.
- Kaicheng is eager to come to America, where he will perfect his English skills while opening his eyes to a greater view of the world. Through his host family he hopes to get a better impression of life in America, culture diversity, customs, holidays, and traditions.
 Yarong from China
DEM025
- Yarong "Cindy" is honest and hardworking and possesses a great sense of responsibility.
- She likes to paint and sketch. Drawing gives her an outlet to express her feelings. Cindy also plays the electronic organ.
- Active in school, she writes news for its website. An independent student, she has lived on campus for four years and exhibits good time management skills, motivation, and maturity.
- Attracted by western cultures, Cindy is eager to learn more about America. She is curious about the diversity of customs, cultures, and traditions. Cindy is excited about meeting her host family and taking part in their life and activities.
Visit http://www.academicyear.org/stu_profiles.asp to view more profiles. Contact Stella Jacaruso at (800) 322-4678 ext 5164 or sjacaruso@aifs.org to find out how you and your family can host any of the wonderful students coming to America! |
AYA Participates in
Bringing China to Arkansas Program (BCAP) |
The University of Arkansas at Little Rock began BCAP in 2001 with the aim of creating a direct teacher education program for American and Chinese teachers. Since its inception, the program has affected 14,768 students, 1,345 teachers, 119 schools, and 70 Arkansas communities.
BCAP has the following goals:
- Promoting cultural understanding of China by providing accurate, hands-on information to Arkansas teachers
- Reducing the insularity of Arkansas by helping internationalize the state, combat negative stereotypes, and bring Chinese and other ethnic groups in Arkansas together for cultural dialogue
- Improving relations between the U.S. and China by sharing while in China and fostering educational exchanges and partnerships.
AYA is proud to have had our Chinese students participate in the program. We are working with two teachers who will be going to China through BCAP. Jingxiao Lu and Betty Wang spoke at Cabot Junior High School about Chinese ancient and modern history, inventions, and theater arts.
As an increasing number of schools and families are seeking Mandarin instruction and exposure, AYA continues to promote cultural exchange by working to place our Chinese students all over the country. To host a student or to find out about our Mandarin Language Exchange Program (MLEP), call today to get more information!
Visit the AIFS Mandarin Language Exchange Program on the web at http://www.aifs.com/mlep/.
For more information, contact:
Stella Jacaruso
(800) 322-4678, ext. 5164
sjacaruso@aifs.org |
Christian from Germany Experiences
Life on a Texas Ranch |
Cow Herding in Texas
By Jan Pack, Host Mother, Texas
Christian Kijatkin, from outside Bonn, Germany, has really gotten a taste of life on a ranch in Texas. Christian lives with the Pack family, who raise and show registered Texas Longhorn cattle. Recently their oldest daughter, Julie, was home for a weekend visit, and the family took some pictures with Christian and their Longhorn steer named “Norman”. Many people in Texas ride horses for work and for pleasure, but not too many have cattle trained to ride. Norman is a 4-year-old Longhorn Steer that the family has had since he was about 6 months old. He is part of a herd of about 25 cows and calves that live and graze the pastures at the ranch. The other animals on the ranch include two horses, a donkey, two goats, two dogs, and five cats. Christian helps the family out each day by feeding the cats and dogs. It’s a good thing he likes animals!
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