All over the world, students from other countries travel far away from home to spend nine to twelve months with another family. The foreign exchange student program has been around for more than a century, and Powell High School is lucky to host a couple of students each year. 

This year, Powell has two students: Kitjanut Chaleamvisutkun (Bucky) from Thailand and Frida Reksten from Norway. As these students come from other countries, they get to experience a life they would never have back home. They adjust to a new life and culture, and they will be able to make memories that last a lifetime. 

“I like the USA culture,” Chaleamvisutkun said. “And how they’re friendly and how they can talk to anyone.”

The first experiences these students have with people can set the stage for what their school year will look like. This led to Frida having positive thoughts on her first experiences. 

“My favorite experience so far has been just getting to know new people,” Reksten said. “I like to socialize and meet new people.”

While both of the students have found America to be a friendly place, they are also shifting to a new small-town life. These changes can make the students have huge adjustments in their lives and give them a view of what it is like to live as an American student.

“The transport is what I feel like is different,” Reksten said. “The sports are also such a big thing.”

Sports and transportation are two things that may look unfamiliar from their cultures, along with how the population and environment can differ. All of these alterations will benefit the students, with helping them learn what American culture is like.

“We get more traffic than what’s here,” Chaleamvisutkun said. “Because where I live, the population is like a million, also, the air here is more dry, while in Thailand, it’s more humid.”

One thing in particular that has surprised Chaleamvisutkun is social interactions and how people greet each other here in America. 

“We normally greet each other with a prayer gesture,” Chaleamvisutkun said. “But here it’s just a handshake and you say hi.”

As social interactions look diverse for Chaleamvisutkun, Reksten recognizes the contrast in how friend groups hang out.

“I think it’s weird how people normally don’t just hang out after school,” Reksten said. “I am always hanging out with my friends after school where I live.”

Furthermore, their everyday life at school is unlike what they are accustomed to.

“I can’t make my own schedule where I live,” Chaleamvisutkun said. “So it’s really good to choose what I want to learn.”

The foreign exchange opportunity allows students to choose subjects they want to learn about or are interested in. Even though students may have more freedom in their schedules, they still have structure throughout their school day.

“One big difference is the fact that you have the same schedule every day,” Reksten said. “We don’t have the same schedule every day where I go to school.”

The high school experience looks divergent in America compared to other countries. As the students go to school each day, they will learn things about themselves that they wouldn’t get to back home. 

“I want to improve my English skills and communication skills,” Chaleamvisutkun said. “And my self-confidence.”

The students will undergo many more moments that they can bring back home and that they will remember forever. 

“I would like to learn to be more social than I already am,” Reksten said. “And have more experiences with talking to different kinds of people.”