By Emmanuel Godfrey (YES 2015-2016, Liberia, hosted by AFS in Cumberland Maine). 

What improvements have you made from spending a year in the U.S.?

This is a question constantly asked of YES alumni in Liberia in their communities. Many people think that a single year of study abroad is not sufficient enough for an individual to bring real impact to their communities. They envision someone with years of humanitarian, community service and diplomatic experience. As YES alumni, we know this is not true.

YES alumni in Liberia celebrated International Education Week 2017 by raising awareness of international education and building students' interests in international exchange programs. Our theme for this year's IEW was "Impact of International Education and Exchange" which we held in Kakata, Margibi County Liberia. 

Our IEW celebration took place indoors and outdoors. It was graciously hosted at the American Corners of the Booker Washington Institute (BWI) school campus. During the indoor program, the 70 participants benefited from alumni speeches. As you can imagine, our alumni answered the frequently asked question, “What improvements had you made from spending a year in the US?”

YES alumni in Liberia were able to prove that their stay in the U.S. was more than they could imagine by highlighting the projects they had initiated on their own, in a group, and how they developed these projects. Alumni also discussed how they introduced change in their communities. The alumni encouraged the students to think, implement and be engaged in their communities. Our alumni believe that if more Liberians were proactive in their communities than we could achieve the Liberia we envision. At the end of the indoor program, every single participant was focused on becoming YES alumni. They showed substantial interest in being active, helpful and insightful community members just like our alumni.

The second phase of the program was held outdoors. This portion gave participants the opportunity to talk one-on-one with alumni and learn more about what they are doing and how they could help in the work. Kickball and soccer were played during the outdoor program. The female participants played the female YES alumnae in a game of kickball. The female participants must have been really inspired by the day's events because they defeated the female YES alumnae. The soccer match was played by the male participants versus the male YES alumni. This time, YES alumni won with two goals. 

This IEW program inspired many students to apply for the YES recruitment test which will be held soon.