On October 12, AFS Thailand held its annual Alumni Reunion and Selection Camp for the U.S. Department of State’s Youth Exchange and Study (YES) Program. The program annually sends approximately 20 students from Thailand’s predominantly Muslim south for a year-long exchange experience at U.S. high schools. The U.S. Embassy in Bangkok also funds an additional five scholarships each year.

 

Cultural Attaché J.P. Schutte attended the program and had a chance to talk with recent YES Program returnees who had spent a year of study at high schools across the United States, from New Hampshire to Nebraska to Washington state. The YES alumni shared their experiences in the U.S. and described the creative community service projects they had organized at home since their return. With the help of the five American YES Abroad students currently spending a year in Thailand, J.P. introduced next year’s YES applicants what they can expect from life in the United States. 

To learn more about AFS Thailand, please visit their website at www.afsthailand.org