Sister cities

Kelsey Lawson
March 3, 2010
Filed under News

Every year, a number of high school juniors from Tempe travel to a foreign country to live with a host family for the summer as part of the Tempe Sister Cities High School Exchange program.

Students have the opportunity to visit Skopje, Macedonia; Regensburg, Germany; Lower Hutt, New Zealand; Zhenjiang, China; Timbuktu, Mali; Beaulieu sur Mer, France; or Carlow, Ireland. This year, the program has added two additional cities: Trollhattan, Sweden and Cuenca, Ecuador.

The process to become a Sister Cities representative for the summer of 2010 began in December with the application process. Sixty-one students filled out forms and then attended an orientation. Group interviews were next for the applicants, followed by an individual interview where the judges learned more about the students’ personal and family life. The selection committee is looking for representatives with certain traits.

“Tempe Sister Cities is trying to select delegates that can make friends for America. Therefore we want students that are friendly and diplomatic. The committee is looking for students that will be comfortable with a new situation and one that can represent Tempe and America by being knowledgeable and interact well with others in our Sister Cities,” Susan McGill, a member of the Sister Cities selection committee said. “We are interested in students that will make the experience positive even if everything isn’t perfect. We want a person that will go out of their way to ensure that the foreign delegate is happy and comfortable in America. We also want to make sure the families will fully participate in the exchange process and welcome another teenager into their home for the summer.”

Just because a student signs up for Sister Cities does not mean they are guaranteed to travel to a host country in the summer. Following the individual interview, 13 students were cut. Forty-eight students remain in the process, with the majority from Corona but others from Marcos de Niza and McClintock.

The Sister Cities social, an event to which the students parents were invited, was next. Now all that is left for the remaining applicants is the final interview. Applicants are asked to study all aspects of the participating countries. At the interview, they will pick a name of a country out of a hat and are asked to describe the country. Starting on March 12, students will be notified by phone whether they made the final cut.

In the end, 32 students will make the final cut. Usually, only 28 students are representatives, but with the addition of two new countries, four more students will have the chance to participate. Depending on the country, students might leave right after school lets out in May or in the middle of June. They spend five weeks in their selected country, living with a host family and their “brother or sister.”

In the fall, the students’ “brother or sister” comes to Arizona to live with them. While in Tempe, the Sister Cities program visits the Phoenix Zoo, Disneyland and the Grand Canyon. They have two weeks at the end of their siblings’ stay to do whatever they want.

This unique opportunity is a rare chance for juniors to explore a different culture and meet new people.

“Originally I just thought it was a cool opportunity to explore another culture,” said junior Yonit Upart, an applicant. “But I also get to build a bond with my brother or sister and show them the US.”

Senior Richa Date, who went to Regensburg last summer, would recommend Sister Cities because of the unique chance to discover another culture in a way she would not have been able to get otherwise.

“Not only do you get to venture out of your comfort zone and see the world for free, but you get to meet some great people from all around the world and make life long friendships,” Date said. “It’s an overall fantastic experience.”

While in Regensburg, Date learned about the lifestyle of Germans, the different culture and language and the varying customs.

For this year’s applicants, Date has a few words of advice.

“Totally immerse yourself in the culture,” Date said. “Don’t think about what is going on back home or why you shouldn’t try something new, just do it. You will never get the same opportunity again and you don’t want to regret it. Try all the cool foods that your family offers you, do all the crazy activities they plan and never give up on an opportunity to go out and explore.”