Traveling the world, experiencing other cultures, and learning more about different languages first hand is a dream of many, but for the foreign exchange students at Frederick High School, that dream is becoming a reality.
Throughout the years, Frederick High School has been a place where foreign exchange students can experience American culture in a place that prides itself on school spirit and student involvement.
This year, Frederick is hosting nine exchange students; three from Spain, three from Italy, two from Germany, and one from Brazil.
Giorgia Terzi, an exchange student from Italy, said that she came to the United States without expectations, stating: “I think that’s the best way to have a great experience here!”
Carmen Casino Blazquez, an exchange student from Spain came with similar expectations, saying that, “I didn’t want to be disappointed if it wasn’t as great as expected.”
As the student body gets more into the year, everyone is creating memories and foreign exchange students are getting to be involved in American traditions; one of the most notable being Friday Night Lights.
Carmen said, “So far what I like the most are the football games, even though I don’t understand it (for the moment). I like it for the atmosphere and for being with my friends.”
Beatriz Gordilho Colen from Brazil and Carol Garcia Calvo from Spain get to experience this American tradition in a different way because they are both cheerleaders with the Frederick Cheer Team.
Another major American tradition is homecoming. In the U.S. as many know, homecoming is commonly accompanied by spirit week, multiple sporting events, a parade, Friday night tailgate, homecoming football game, and of course, the dance.
This year, many of our foreign exchange students participated in the various spirit days leading up to the dance.
Additionally, several exchange students are taking advantage of Frederick’s various sporting programs, the arts, and clubs. Several are involved in programs such as football, cross country, cheer, softball, volleyball, and our theater department. Giorgia also noted how she plans to play basketball in the winter.
Frederick, as previously noted, allows foreign exchange students the opportunity to experience school sports, something that is less common in some European countries. This also provides another environment for Frederick students to interact with and get to know the foreign exchange students.
When the Frederick student body gets a chance to interact with foreign exchange students, they get to learn more about other cultures as well as experience things from a new perspective.
Elaina Thorpe, a host sister to Maria Pintori from Italy, said that, “hosting an exchange student has been quite interesting. It is really fun to have another girl in the house and to learn about her culture and to see the comparisons between her life back home and our life here.”
Mr. Brown, the choir director at Frederick, has been hosting two exchange students every year for the last eight years and has hosted 14 students in total. He noted that, “It [hosting] is something that my wife and I came into from an emergency need, and then fell in love with. We enjoy hosting because we get a chance to share the things we love about our country with these kids, and in turn get to learn about their homes, and cultures. These kids in turn become our kids, and we have had several of them come back to visit. They enrich our lives.”
As for the school, the students, clubs, and teams that have our students benefit from the same cultural exchange, and the level of academic excellence these students usually bring enriches our classes as well.”
While the program is now thriving, Covid caused it to come to a halt in the St. Vrain Valley School District.
Mr. Brown stated, “Covid caused a lot of kids not to be able to come and have a year here. The St. Vrain Valley School District decided to not let any kids come for two years. It was hard for my family as we love hosting.”
However, the program has moved passed this and is now flourishing. Carmen excitedly described how she hopes “to have a good time, make friends that I can keep despite the distance when I return [back to Spain], have unforgettable experiences, and improve my English.”
Frederick continues to be a place where foreign exchange students can experience American culture, student life, and learn more about the English language while allowing the Frederick student body to learn more about foreign exchange student’s cultures at the same time.
