- Tell us a story about your program experience. By far the most rewarding experience I had in Russia was speaking with my host mother for the first time completely in Russian. The exchange itself was remarkably ordinary, but to me it was groundbreaking. Before heading to Russia, I could barely say the word "hello." My journey to a full-fledged conversation was hard-won and so very gratifying. The interaction inspired a new confidence in my fledgling Russian abilities and carried me through… Read More
- For Abena Amoakuh, persistence has made all the difference. She had been studying Spanish since kindergarten but decided to switch to Chinese in college to support her interest in a business career. The language was a challenge, and when she studied abroad in China during her junior year, she often let local friends take the lead when language skills were required. Looking for a more intensive language experience, she applied for the Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) Program that summer… Read More
- WASHINGTON DC Years after their experience with the Future Leaders Exchange Program ended, four alumni were back in the US this week learning how to GoViral. The four won spots in the inaugural GoViral Reporting Tour, which gave 20 journalists and media professionals from Central Asia, Armenia, and Georgia a chance to meet with industry professionals around the US and to learn about digital media. The tour is sponsored by the US Department of State and organized by the Foreign Press Center… Read More
- Exchange programs come in variety of forms, from high school or college students to researchers and professionals including entrepreneurs. Our innovation programs work with startup founders to establish relationships between emerging technology leaders and US-based experts. The ultimate goal: to get out of the building and validate their products in a global setting. Recently, our Innovation team welcomed three international EdTech startups to the United States for customer discovery… Read More
- By Ma Jianhong, Teacher of Critical Languages Program 2016-17, on his experience as an exchange teacher at Izard County Consolidated Elementary School in Arkansas. When I learned from the award letter it was mandatory for a TCLP exchange teacher to complete 8-10 hours of outreach each month, my exhilaration of exploring a new country suddenly dissipated, followed by my worry about how I could accomplish such a mission. It had been looming large on my mind ever after. A lot of questions… Read More
- Filling the stately Kennedy Caucus room in the Russell Senate Office Building today, 230 exuberant high school exchange students from the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES) program capped off their 2016-17 academic year with some well-earned fanfare. Speakers at-the-ready to congratulate the group of scholarship students included former US Senator Richard Lugar (YES program co-founder) and Mark Taplin, Acting Assistant Secretary for the US Department of State's Bureau of Educational… Read More
- The 2016-17 academic year marked a decade of the Teachers of Critical Languages Program. Since 2006, the program has sent 236 exchange teachers to 155 US host schools in 38 states and the District of Columbia. For 2016-17, American Councils placed 24 exchange teachers from Egypt and China across the United States. Throughout the academic year, TCLP celebrated with special events such as lesson plan contests, a video campaign with reflections from alumni, and a #TCLP10 photo campaign on Twitter… Read More
- During a recent trip to Indonesia, Vice President Mike Pence met with 23 Indonesian alumni of the Young Southeast Asian Leaders Initiative (YSEALI) at the US Embassy in Jakarta. The professional exchange initiative seeks to build the leadership capabilities of young professionals across the region, strengthen ties between the US and Southeast Asia, and nurture a community among the people of Southeast Asia. Dissa Ahdanisa traveled to the US for the first time last year on the YSEALI… Read More
- Two alumni from the Florida Atlantic University College of Business (FAU) discovered a way to prevent students from finding test answers online during exams. Elena Soboleva was pursuing her MBA at FAU on an international student visa when she noticed a large number of American students receiving high marks without studying; she discovered that many of these students find their test answers online. A local news station in Orlando, Florida had also investigated cheating methods at a local station… Read More
- This article was originally published in the Bradley Herald the hub for FLEX alumni and their stories. In the middle of the Karakum Desert in Turkmenistan lies the city of Mary, built on an oasis next to one of the country's major rivers. And, in Mary a different kind of oasis exists for exceptional students: it's tucked away in an American cultural center, where local high school students discover international programs, participate in educational projects, and learn about opportunities to… Read More
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