Çisem Kaço from Türkiye is the YES Student of the Month
This article originally appeared in The Statesman Journal
by Elida Perez, Statesman Journal
Maria Kiptea had heard a lot of negative things about Americans before she landed in this country.
Before the 16-year-old Muslim girl from Bangladesh arrived in Salem for one year, she admits she did not know whether to believe a lot of the stereotyping she heard.
"Americans are fat and alcoholics and they don't know how to dress modest(ly)," Kiptea said of how people in the United States are viewed by some people in her country, which is between India and Myanmar.
Kiptea wound up at Sprague through the Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study Program that began after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
The exchange program is funded by the U.S. Department of State and sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. It provides scholarships for students ages 15 to 17 from countries with significant Muslim populations.
The students spend up to one academic year or semester in select countries. Among the goals of the program are that students stay with a host family, attend high school, learn about American society and help teach Americans about theirs.
Kiptea said her experience in Salem has helped her form her own opinion about the United States. "I learned there's a lot of people that don't drink or do drugs and are concerned with their health," she said.
The issue of modesty, however, still is open for debate.
Her family, she said, is relatively liberal for being Muslim, and she is allowed to wear jeans and T-shirts before she gets married — which is still considered modest. But American fashions surprises her still.
"I'm shocked at what people wear," she said, speaking mostly of sleeveless tops and short skirts. She supposes that modesty is a matter of personal interpretation.
Kiptea reports that she has been been able to get to know and like America through her own experiences, and she also has been able to share her traditions and culture with her fellow classmates and host family.
Julie Kahn, Kiptea's host mother, for instance, said she was previously unfamiliar with some aspects of Kiptea's faith.
Kahn learned that Muslims such as Kiptea's family, are not able to have photos or artwork of animals or people on their walls and that they go through a thorough cleaning ritual before praying.
Kiptea said living with her host family has been one of the best parts of her experience in Salem and Oregon.
Since her culture is family oriented, being part of the Kahn family has made her feel comfortable and very much at home.
"Being with a family has made (being away from home) easier," Kiptea said.
Kiptea said although she misses her family, this year has been a life-changing experience. She said she has appreciated learning about another part of the world, and that all of the negative things she had heard about America are not necessarily true.
Photo: Maria Kiptea, far left. Photo special to the Statesman Journal
Copyright © 2012 www.statesmanjournal.com.