“Like most things in life, the harder they are, the greater the reward. Being a host family is hard at times – you have to be constantly mindful of how this young person is holding up – but the value this relationship brought to our family is tremendous. We don’t seem any different, but the value will be seen in how we and our children approach and forge relationships with people from other cultures in the future.”

“Philipp wanted to learn the slang and accent of American kids – he did. When he came in the door and called out to me – I couldn’t tell if he was my son or the ‘foreign kid.’ However, he did not forget or lose regard for his own traditions.”

“What one receives has a great deal to do with what one invests. We put a whole lot into the relationship with our host student and we got back more than we imagined possible.”

“My advice for future host families would be to first understand the commitment – emotionally, financially, and the responsibility you are accepting. You are ‘her’ parent, friend, confidant, etc. Your acceptance of another daughter and treating her like your own is key to the success.”

“First of all, I want to let you know what a terrific experience we had with Nina. My husband and I had serious reservations about hosting an exchange student. My daughter begged for two years to do this and finally we relented. It turned out to be one of the best decisions we’ve made. We all grew very attached to Nina and were sad to see her go. Matter of fact, my daughter just returned from spending 10 days with Nina and her family in Germany. They have invited the rest of our family to come and I think maybe next summer we’ll take them up on their offer!”

“ASSIST chose a fantastic person in Christelle. The most important traits are open-mindedness, a good attitude, a willingness to experience a new culture…, and a relative ease in making friends. Christelle had all of these.”

"ASSIST students are well prepared for their experience of a school year away from home.  Every ASSIST student we have met is smart; is fluent in English; is self-confident; is emotionally mature enough to last ten months away from home; is out-going and is willing to adapt to different cultural norms large and small.  It appears you do a tremendous job of screening and selecting candidates."