Route J-1

By Kristin Chasan, Communications Coordinator, Cultural Homestay International (CHI)
A version of this story is published on CHI’s blog

Darya poses with some of her beautiful custom pillows that were inspired by her time in the United States as a J-1 participant.

In 2010, Darya Modestova was just 19 years old.  She had just graduated from high school, and was sweating through a hot summer in her hometown of Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan.  She had no work experience, but she was ambitious and wanted to do something that would help her succeed in life.  So, she created a resume and posted it online.  Through sheer guile, she earned herself three interviews, and was eventually hired by Resource Interexchange Consulting (RIC) as their Operations Manager.  This moment was a turning point in her life, because it was at RIC where she learned about the J-1 Exchange Visitor Program.

She knew that the chance to live and work in America was something she couldn’t pass up, so the very next summer Darya was on a plane to Boston for a brand new experience that would forever change her.  Darya spent the summer of 2011 living and working in Cape Cod, Massachusetts as part of her Summer Work and Travel program.  She had a great summer, and left with a number of valuable new skills.  She learned how to treat others in a professional setting, how to work hard, and how to help a business succeed.  She also gained confidence that she could succeed when she put her mind to something.  To say this changed her life would be an understatement. Read More ›

Categories: Program Spotlight

By Alaa Mahmoud, J-1 Summer Work Travel Alumnus
A version of this story was originally published on CIEE blog

Hello everyone! I’m Alaa Mahmoud from Egypt. I’m currently enrolled as a fourth year medical student in Suez Canal University, Egypt. In 2006, I participated in the J-1 Summer Work Travel program and attended the Council on International Educational Exchange’s (CIEE) Civic Leadership Summit 2016 (CLS16). These experiences influenced me as a person and made me a change maker.

Children gathering around their tutors during different sessions during the children’s green camp. Left: English conversation skills. | Right: First aid session.

After completing my J-1 program and participating in CLS16 where I had the privilege to meet 62 young leaders from all around the world, I was inspired to launch an organization concerned with environmental and public health issues. While attending the summit, I gained skills that gave me the motivation to create ExEgypt (Exchanging & Empowering Global Youth Potentials & Talents), an initiative involving young children to help create young leaders. Read More ›

Categories: Program Spotlight

By, Liz Horne, J-1 Camp Counselor Alumna from Australia

I can vividly remember my first drive down Frost Valley Road, it was mid-June 1986, the light dancing through the trees, the crystal clear water of the Neversink River (smiling in the back seat of the caravan I thought “what a great name for a river – should be good for teaching someone to swim”), the smell of the Catskills Mountain summer and the welcome I received from the summer camp leadership team.

“Ready for anything”

I had arrived early and knew I would be helping with those last minute preparations before camp. Over the next week I tried my hand at fencing horse enclosures, mucking stables, cleaning cabins, moving equipment from its winter storage place to its summer activity area, all the while working beside someone who was thankful for the help and willing to teach me the ropes.

One-by-one as the staff arrived, staff training came and went, I was prepared for what was to come. That first summer I worked as a counsellor in Windsong with the 15 and 16 year old girls and what a treat that was.  We, the staff and the campers laughed, cried, challenged each other, explored topics that all 15/16 year old girls need to talk about in a safe environment, and decided together that girls could do a two night overnight just as easily as boys could, and hiked over Wildcat Mountain to Gusty’s Pavilion.  Read More ›

Categories: Program Spotlight

By Eli Rolli, Camp Director, YMCA Camp Benson

Read testimonials from international students who served as camp counselors at YMCA Camp Benson during the summer of 2017.

Amy Carolan inside Fort Benson

“While at camp we often heard the phrase ‘child X needs camp’, I never really understood this phrase but I went with it anyway. It was only at the end of the summer after 10 weeks of camp in the USA that I fully understood the phrase. At 21 years old, I realized that I needed camp. My J-1 experience not only allowed me to make a positive impact on the lives of thousands of young Americans, but it also made the most positive impact on my life. It helped me in ways I could never have imagined. It bettered me physically, mentally and spiritually. It is an experience that is so unique to America and something without the J-1 visa I would never have had the chance to experience. I made friends for life during my summer camp experience from all over the world and I got the chance to immerse myself in American culture. International students need summer camp and summer camps need international students. Without my J-1 experience I would be a completely different person. Camp changed me as a person and my outlook on life. It made me a more positive person. It changed me for the better. Camp has the power to change so many lives.” – Amy “Sunshine” Carolan (Ireland)

Read More ›

Categories: Program Spotlight

By Aleksandra Węgrzyn and Mateusz Stankiewicz, J-1 Interns from Poland

Display Garden, Pleasant View Gardens, Loudon, NH

My name is Aleksandra and together with my fiancé Mateusz we are students from Warsaw University of Life Sciences in Poland.

We came to the United States for an internship. We worked in Pleasant View Gardens, which is a greenhouse located in beautiful New Hampshire. We loved the state for its lakes and mountains. The views were gorgeous! The company we worked in is one of the leaders in liner (small plants) production in the whole country. It is famous for the diversity of plants it offers – from annuals and perennials to herbs and vegetables. We spent some time working in different departments that allowed us to see and understand how the whole company works. The internship itself was really interesting. We learned more than we could have ever expected and made many friends we’ll try to stay in touch with. Read More ›

Categories: Program Spotlight

By Lynette Evans-Tiernan, Communications Manager for the J-Visa Exchange Visitor Program

Let’s take a look back at some of the stories that shaped an extraordinary year of the Exchange Visitor Program.

2,300 mile bicycle adventure on Route 66
Au pair Tamires took a solo cycling trip through Historic Route 66! “I met a lot of nice people while I was cycling. Real people with real stories.”

Welcomed the First Outbound Rotary Exchange Student from Nepal
Seema Tamang traveled to the United States as the first outbound Rotary Exchange student from Nepal. “Being blind, I have to admit I was a bit scared at first, but it did not take long to adapt, and enjoy an amazing experience.”

Read More ›

Categories: Program Spotlight

By Anna Boisseau, Communications Officer, Cultural Vistas
A version of this story was published on Cultural Vistas Blog

Pierre Pouplard mans the Saucier station at Per Se. He’s using cherry tomatoes that he picked out himself at a local farmer’s market. Photo by: Peter Plotica

You’ll see a different menu every time you walk through the blue doors of Per Se, the Michelin three-starred New York restaurant located across from Central Park. This creativity is in part due to the diverse staff that collaborates in the Per Se Kitchen, including international trainees.

With Chef de Cuisine Eli Kaimeh at its helm, the restaurant invents new concepts for their nine-course tasting menu daily. While the overall vision of the restaurant is Thomas Keller’s, the whole kitchen staff of 40 is involved in planning the next day’s dishes. “[It’s] usually a discussion by everybody sitting around a table. And that [really] includes everybody,” said Kaimeh. Read More ›

Categories: Program Spotlight

By Lynette Evans-Tiernan, Communications Manager for the J-Visa Exchange Visitor Program

Loyola Marymount University students indicate where they are from and where they have studied around the world

November 13-17 was International Education week. This joint initiative of the U.S. Department of State and the U.S. Department of Education is part of an effort to promote programs that prepare Americans for a global environment and attract future leaders from abroad to study, learn, and exchange experiences. Read More ›

Categories: Program Spotlight

By Jody Mayo, Company Storyteller and Writer for Alliance Abroad Group
A version of this story was originally published on Alliance Abroad

Kush preparing a United Aerial Drone for flight testing.

When Hurricane Harvey hit Houston, Kush Sutaria, a J-1 intern, was on a sales call in San Antonio, fortunately out of the fury of the storm’s eye. As it turns out, being in San Antonio proved fortuitous in other ways. Kush was exactly in the right place to be able to assist Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and U.S. military with hurricane disaster relief efforts.

Kush spent the summer interning at United Aerial, a drone data collection and management company based in Houston, Texas. Kush attributes his academic background and the fact that he has a private pilot’s license as being important reasons he was asked to join the company. The boutique company offers highly-specialized technology and has a very unique culture. Kush’s enthusiasm and education made him a great addition to the team. Kush’s background also made it easy for him to obtain a remote pilot’s certificate for drones. It was a skill that proved invaluable in the very real disaster scenario he encountered. Read More ›

Categories: Program Spotlight

By Carlos Rodriguez-Cruz y Celis, Intern and Lynette Evans-Tiernan, Communications Manager for the J-Visa Exchange Visitor Program

J-1 Volunteers support runners at the TCS New York City Marathon

More than 1,400 participants who are in the United States on the J-1 Exchange Visitor Program– including students, interns, au pairs, and research scholars – are volunteering at the TCS New York City Marathon on November 5, 2017, the world’s largest marathon.

The exchange visitors will comprise more than 14 percent of the total volunteers at the marathon. They will stand alongside U.S. volunteers at miles 5 and 6 in Brooklyn and mile 18 in Harlem. As they provide water and moral support to nearly 50,000 runners from more than 135 countries, they will experience firsthand the American values of volunteerism and civic engagement.

Read More ›

Categories: Program Spotlight