Education
AFHS students find connection and culture through national exchange
Elizabeth Spencer | Lehi Free Press
Nineteen soon-to-be graduates from American Fork High School will be traveling abroad this summer. The American Exchange Program (A.E.P.) gives high school students the opportunity to visit parts of the country for free while being hosted by families across the nation for a week-long experience.
Students and AFHS staff gathered at Kneaders Bakery & Cafe in Pleasant Grove to open their assignments. Principal Peter Glahn addressed the students before they opened their destinations. “This program is about people. I want you to remember that. I think you are all going to fabulous locations. I can guarantee you, you will love the people you encounter on this journey.”
Students were assigned to different states, including New York, Massachusetts, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, New Jersey, Connecticut, Arkansas, Texas, Virginia, Minnesota, Oregon, California, Washington, and even Hawaii.
Vanessa Gaisford’s son experienced A.E.P. Last year. She said he has lifelong friends from that one week. “Even on his way to college, he met up with a friend in Wyoming whom he had gone to New York with last year.”
This year, Vanessa’s daughter Maddie is participating. “I know Maddie is going to have the same experience. She is going to meet people her age from different areas in the United States, and she’s going to love them, and they’re going to be great friends. I’m really excited for her to go to Hawaii.”
“I think it’s awesome to be able to get to meet a bunch of different people from a bunch of different places, and I think it’ll help me see a different culture than what I’m used to in Utah,” shared Maddie.
She is so excited to go to Hawaii, calling it a “dream vacation.” Maddie has never been to Hawaii.
Senior Ava McBride is headed back east. “I have never been to New York. I’ve always wanted to go. It’s such a cool place. I’m excited to get to know the people there, see what New York is like, and how they live. I love traveling to places and getting to know the people and culture.”
Kirsten Cluff had an older child who went to Paris, Texas, years ago. She has also hosted two students here in American Fork. This year, her senior is also heading to Texas, but to a different city than her older sibling. “They get to meet kids from all different cultures and backgrounds and get into their actual lives, where they live and see what they do.”
Liberty Harrison is heading to North Carolina. She said it sounds magical, and she is excited. “It just felt like such an awesome thing to do in such a wonderful way to feel united with the country and with people from my own school. It does bring people together in such a special way that can’t be replicated.”
Rachel Wells helps with the program at A.F.H.S. While participating in the A.E.P., her daughter went to Kilgore, Texas. “She had the opportunity to do all kinds of different things. She went to different churches and experienced how they worship. She also got to brand cattle. She shot guns and got to experience the whole culture of Texas.”
Wells said the experience prepared her daughter to interact with people and cultures of different kinds. “The program is all about bringing connection across our country. When you spend time with people, you learn to love them. It doesn’t matter if you have differences in opinions or lifestyles. You just learn to love each other. It’s amazing what can happen in one week.”
This is AFHS Principal Peter Glahn’s 4th year participating in the program. “It’s important for every kid to have an out-of-the-bubble experience. We think because we live in Utah County, we are the only ones living in the bubble, but as they surveyed kids around the country, every student felt like they were living in a bubble,” shared Glahn.
He says the experience is for kids to go out, meet people from different places, and realize they have more similarities than differences. “Their similarities are strong enough to overcome those differences. It’s a pretty special experience. They remain close to the people that they met.”
When the death of Charlie Kirk happened in Utah, Glahn said kids reached out to AFHS students from different parts of the country to check to make sure they were okay and to let them know they were thinking about them. “These are kids who have different political beliefs, but they know each other as humans now.”
Glahn loves the day when the students find out where they get to go. His favorite part of the experience is when it’s host week for AFHS. He said when locals host, they rediscover their own hometown while showing other students the Beehive State. “All the kids who come here are just awed by the scenery, the mountains, and the red rocks.” Glahn still keeps in touch with his host students. He met up with one of them on a trip to New England and got a tour of Harvard from another one of his exchange students. “They give us news of their lives. We stay connected,” stated Glahn.
A.E.P. Is funded by private donors who see the value of having the country come together through the program. If you have a student who will be a senior next year and would be interested in participating, you may find more information at Americanexchangeproject.org. If you would like to host a student, you may contact Cole Perry, Assistant Principal at AFHS, via email at cperry@americanexchangeproject.org
