- Applications are now open for new volunteer evaluators to review scholarship applications of high school students from 29 countries, including the United States, on a flexible basis. Our next group of volunteers will serve between November 2021 and March 2022 to evaluate applications from prospective students in the following youth exchange programs, which are sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs:The Future Leaders Exchange (FLEX): Initiated in… Read More
- American Councils for International Education joins the international community in mourning former Senator Richard Lugar, who died Sunday at the age of 87.The longest serving senator in Indiana’s history, Mr. Lugar dedicated much of his 36-year career to foreign policy, advocating for nuclear non-proliferation and twice serving as the chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee. He was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2012.In the wake of 9/11, he and the late Senator Edward “Ted”… Read More
- Editor's note: This letter to the editor was originally published in the Washington Post on May 10. I was disappointed to see in the April 29 front-page obituary for former senator Richard G. Lugar, “Senator was key in U.S. foreign policy,” no mention of his role as co-founder of the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES) Program, which brings nearly 1,000 high school students to the United States every year. The Indiana Republican spoke annually to these students about how… Read More
- The Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study program celebrated its 15th anniversary and the newest group of alumni this week on Capitol Hill.The event, held in the Kennedy Caucus room, included remarks from YES co-founder, former US Senator Richard Lugar, who received booming applause and a standing ovation from the more than 200 students in attendance. The YES program is sponsored by the US Department of State and funded by Congress.Mr. Lugar commended the students on the courage it took to… Read More
- On May 8, the 2023-2024 Future Leaders Exchange (FLEX) program and Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES) program cohorts were welcomed to the last webinar of the "Global Leadership Series," provided by Dr. Sam Potolicchio, Executive Director of American Councils’ Center for Global Leadership (CGL).The concluding meeting featured the former U.S. Senator and Senate sponsor of FLEX, Bill Bradley, The New York Times columnist and bestselling author of “The Man Who Broke Capitalism," Mr.… Read More
- Since returning to Kenya, YES program alumnus Mwalimu William Karisa ('12) has become an adovocate for positive change on several development service projects in his home community.While on the YES program, Mwalimu lived with a host family and attended high school in Blue Grass, Iowa, where he learned about American society and values, developed leadership skills, and helped educate Americans about his country and culture.During his time in the US, he began "looking at the differences that we… Read More
- Each year, the Civic Education Workshops (CEW) convene a cohort of participants from the Future Leaders Exchange (FLEX), Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES), and Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange (CBYX) programs, hailing from various host communities across the United States, for an immersive exploration of American civil society in the nation’s capital. During the workshop, students engage in sessions on topics like First Amendment rights, foreign policy, and leadership, equipping… Read More
- The students at the Youth Exchange and Study English Camp in Senegal had a chance to practice their language skills with a diplomat last month. The camp offers exchange program semi-finalists two weeks of intensive English training and preparation before their academic year abroad in the United States, and last month the camp included a visit from US Ambassador to Senegal, Dr. Tulinabo Mushingi. The 17 students, alumni assistants, and staff welcomed Ambassador Mushingi with… Read More
- I love being an exchange student because of the way confusion turns into amazement. Earlier this year, while doing homework in my room, my host mom walked in and asked if I wanted to come to a jazz concert. Of course I said yes. The number one rule of being an exchange student is to always say yes when someone invites you somewhere. My host mom then added, "You should change, it's at the President's residence!" President, I assumed at the moment, meant the president of the jazz association, who… Read More
- Since FLEX began in 1992, over 30,000 students from two dozen countries in Europe and Eurasia have earned scholarships to travel to the United States and learn about U.S. culture and share their own while living with volunteer host families and attending high school. FLEX Abroad participants will likewise engage in citizen diplomacy and develop critical global leadership skills during their immersive exchange experiences. Through learning a new language, living with a host family, and attending… Read More
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