Hart High School traditionally accepts exchange students who spend a year of their education living here in the U.S. with a host family. For some who don’t know what an exchange student/program is, it can be defined as “an arrangement in which people from different countries visit each other's country, perhaps to strengthen links between them or to improve foreign language skills.” Sarah Kranz, Antonia Ross, and Marcos Roldan Galicia all joined the Hart High School community to gain new experiences through their foreign exchange programs.
Sarah Kranz is from Germany, and when asked what her inspiration for traveling to America was, she said, “It's been a big dream of mine since I was little: to be an exchange student in the U.S. I want to experience the student life of an American teenager.” Sarah is looking forward to sporting events, especially volleyball (she is on the varsity team), school dances, and graduating here. She also mentioned her experience so far: “It's been amazing. I have a great host family, and I am thankful for everything.” A big shout-out to the Riley Family who is hosting Sarah this year!
Another foreign exchange student from Germany is Atonia Ross. Atonia, unlike the others, didn’t arrive in Hart until early September. Atonia explained, “My father also was an exchange student in the U.S., and he always told me about [this country]...so I also wanted to be an exchange student.” She also explained that she likes her host family very much, and the students here are very nice. Antonia mentioned, like Sarah, that she is excited to explore new sports as well as attend prom.
The final exchange student, who is all the way from Spain, is Marcos Roldan Galicia. Marcos was the first exchange student to arrive in Oceana County; he beat Sarah to our small community only by a day. He’s also interested in sports, as is the common theme. He’s currently playing football on the JV team, and this is his first time playing the sport. When asked what inspired him to come to the U.S., he said, “I wanted to learn how to speak fluent English, and I want to get to know different cultures.”
Although being an exchange student may come with challenges, partaking in an exchange program also sounds like a lot of fun, and it will be an experience of a lifetime for these three students. And, with their experience so far, Hart’s exchange students were kind enough to offer some advice for others who might be interested in being in an exchange program. Sarah offered, “If you have the opportunity to be an exchange student or be in an exchange program, do it. Just be brave enough to do it, and you won’t regret it. It's a lot of fun; you'll have great experiences, make great memories, and just get into it.” Marcos echoed that sentiment by saying, “If [someone has] the opportunity to go to another country to study, I would say to go.”
