- Editor’s Note: October 10 is World Mental Health Day. We asked Ms. Huang, program manager for the Chinese Overseas Flagship Program, to talk about the positive impact mindfulness can have, particularly during study abroad experiences. What’s the first image that comes to mind when you hear the word ‘mindfulness’? Is it an idyllic scene of Bohemians in long skirts frolicking across a green field? Or, do you perhaps see a young monk serenely sitting within a Buddhist temple in lotus pose?… Read More
- Editor’s note: Anastasiya Gulak is a program assistant for Open World who grew up speaking Ukrainian and Russian. She later studied English and French and has maintained her skills in all four languages. She has worked as an interpreter, volunteered as a translator for refugees and students, and continues to seek out opportunities to hone her skills. She offered her tips for studying, learning, and maintaining a second (or third, or fourth) language. My love for foreign languages … Read More
- Editor's note: Hannah Combe is not a dancer by trade, but her enthusiasm for dance helped her find community while living overseas. Ms. Combe has lived in Georgia, where she taught English as a Peace Corps volunteer. She has also taught English in Bulgaria as a Fulbright scholar. She is currently a program assistant on the AC Study and Research abroad team. When I was four years old I refused to wear anything but my pink tutu. At the peak of my illustrious dance career, I ran around a… Read More
- American Councils was proud to participate in an international symposium at Okayama University, a Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) partner, to discuss the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and US-Japan relations as part of the university’s 70th-anniversary celebration. The international symposium, “Towards Greater Okayama as the Center for the US and Japan Youth Development to Advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),” included panel discussions featuring… Read More
- Editor’s note: Karissa Huntington is the senior program manager for field operations at American Councils, where she has worked for eight years. She didn't start her career in international education, but hosting international students changed her path. She and her husband have hosted a total of 45 students, au pairs, and foster children from more than 20 countries. She thinks she’ll probably always host, and she thinks you should also consider hosting, even just once. My interest in… Read More
- Editor’s note: Adrian Erlinger manages innovation and capacity building initiatives at American Councils. He has been leading the way on several internationalization projects, including the Central Asia University Partnership Program (UniCEN), which recently brought together representatives from 20 Central Asian universities and US experts in Tashkent, Uzbekistan to design action plans for partnerships. What is internationalization, anyway? The world faces big economic,… Read More
- It started with a text message in 2012: “Love it. Definitely!” That was Sheila Green’s response after her husband Brian asked if she was open to hosting a fellow from Ukraine. Five fellows later, the Green family has no plans of stopping. They’ve hosted two fellows from Ukraine, two from Georgia, and one from Armenia—all through the Professional Fellows Program (PFP). The State Department sponsored program, which is administered by American Councils, is a two-way exchange for young… Read More
- When Kyle Spawn decided to study abroad in Moscow in 2018, he already knew a thing or two about living in Russia. He played with Russian alphabet blocks as a child. The family dog could sit and stay if asked in English or Russian. His mom even made a few Russian meals for him and his brother. Her family is Dutch, but Carla Spawn made an effort to share Russia with her children as well. Nearly 40 years before her son studied in Russia, she had studied abroad there too -- and on the same… Read More
- WASHINGTON — More than 200 exchange students celebrated on Capitol Hill last week, marking their graduation from the Future Leaders Exchange (FLEX) program. The ceremony for the 26th graduating class included students from Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Poland, Romania, and Ukraine, and featured special speeches by students from Ukraine and Moldova. State Department officials, congressional staff, and embassy representatives joined host families, local coordinators… 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… Read More
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