For Scotia-Glenville sophomore James Brown, hosting a German exchange student for two weeks has been a lesson in life he could never have picked up from a textbook.
The friendship he has made is invaluable, he said, and the connection he now has with someone who lives a half a world away is one that he will have for life.
Brown and his family opened up their lives and home to one of the 19 German exchange students in the Scotia-Glenville School District this year. He will be visiting their country in February as part of the exchange.
Marcus Kiefer, my exchange student, and I got along well, and we really had a great time, said Brown. `Marcus and I like sports a lot, and we both learned about the differences in sports because of cultures. Marcus taught me a lot about soccer, and I had the privilege to teach him about baseball and American football.`
Brown said the greatest challenge was fitting in everything he and his family wanted Kiefer to experience in just two weeks.
`Although we had a great time, I do have to admit it was tough to schedule activities because he was only here for two weeks,` Brown said. `We were able to manage to see New York City, Boston, and we also went to the Great Escape. I think the best moment of the exchange was seeing the look on Marcus’ face when he saw Times Square.`
Corrina Coorssen, the German teacher at the high school who helped coordinate the exchange, said this is the 10th such exchange between Scotia-Glenville and the Robert Schuman Gymnasium in Saarlouis, Germany.
Coorssen said that in previous years, the number of applicants was too high and students were selected according to the timeliness and quality of their applications. In Germany, she said, the teacher selects participants largely according to teacher recommendations. The German students arrived Saturday, Sept.13, and left Saturday, Sept. 27, after two weeks of seeing sights all over New England.
`During their visit, they had the opportunity to participate in field trips to the Norman Rockwell Museum, Hancock Shaker Village, Boston, the Albany Capitol buildings and of course New York City,` said Coorssen.
In February, the Scotia-Glenville students taking part in the exchange will journey to Germany, where they will attend school with their hosts and spend the carnival break, five days, with their host families. During their stay, the students will visit sights around Germany including Trier, the oldest city in Germany, Freiburg in the Black Forest region, and the city of Saarlouis.
`I look forward to traveling to Germany in February and experiencing their way of life and, of course, sightseeing,` said Brown.
Kiefer said coming to New York was a dream that had turned into reality.
`I enjoyed every second of my visit, beginning at JFK airport,` said Kiefer.
`All the Germans who participated in this exchange, we can say, ‘Yes we celebrated the American way of life!’ I had the luck to stay with very nice people. James was a really good friend for me and helped me with everything. Of course, one of the biggest moments was the visit to New York City. The differences of our cultures are bigger than I thought, and at the beginning of my visit it was like another world.`
Brown’s mom, Kathy, said the experience was even more rewarding than she had anticipated. She said the boys were a perfect match, and the program was well executed by both academic institutions. She said she was sad to see Marcus leave and that she is excited for her son to see Germany because he never has been abroad before.
`It was an easy transition for the boys because they were so much alike. I know they will remain friends for a very long time,` said Kathy Brown.
Kiefer agreed that the program does a good job of matching students.
`Ms. Brown always was there for me, and together we three had a really interesting and funny time,` said Kiefer.
The program is funded by various sources, including fundraising and parent contributions. Hosting families provide room and board at no cost to the students.“