This article was written by Bob Dohr and originally published in Lake Country Now

There are no skyscrapers in Lake Country. And folks here don't eat all their meals at McDonald's.

A land full of big cities and tall buildings and a populace that dines mostly on fast food are just some of the misconceptions a pair of exchange students had about America before spending time here.

Nugraheni "Tizzy" Pratitis, 18, of Indonesia and 16-year-old Syed Qasim Hussain of Pakistan are two of six foreign students who are spending the school year in Lake Country as part of the YES program, a high school exchange program funded by the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and hosted by AFS Intercultural Programs USA.

The public diplomacy initiative builds bridges of international understanding, especially between Americans and people in countries with significant Muslim populations, and gives high-achieving high school students full merit scholarships to study in the U.S. and live with American families. Pratitis is attending Oconomowoc High School. Hussain is spending the school year at Catholic Memorial in Waukesha.

"I was really surprised to know that there are places like Waukesha where only 71,000 people live, because when we see America through TV, we always see the really major cities like New York, Washington, D.C., or San Francisco," Hussain said. "I thought there would be way more people here and a lot of tall buildings."

Pratitis agreed with Hussain on the skyscraper thing, and said the American people are "nicer than what I expected" because she said a lot of movies she's seen portray Americans as individualistic.

But it goes the other way too.

The two say they encounter Americans who really don't know much about the places the students come from.

"When I first gave my presentation, I realized that they knew nothing about my country, and I had to revise it so that they could understand it more," Hussain said.

Stephany Freedman is the co-coordinator of the AFS Waukesha & West YES cluster, which encompasses the high schools in Waukesha County as well as those in Hartford and Watertown.

Freedman and co-coordinator Debra Bursinger are responsible for providing at least six educational activities covering government, community service, and culture for the YES scholars each year to expose them to different facets of American life.

This year, the YES scholars have been to an Oconomowoc Common Council meeting, the State Capitol, Indian Summer, the Madison Martin Luther King Day Celebration, Discovery World, a Shabbat dinner and an outdoor Eid al-Adha celebration, a Girl Scout World Thinking Day, the Oconomowoc Kiwanis Breakfast Club and other volunteer activities.

"By being here, they are busting stereotypes daily," Freedman said. "Whether they do formal presentations or are interacting with people that they meet around town, they are teaching by example.

"It's thrilling for a fourth-grader to learn that there are McDonald's and KFC's in Indonesia. It's eye-opening for a high schooler to learn that most women have access to education in Pakistan. It's perception-altering for a church adult study group to learn that Jesus has a valued place in Islam," Freedman said.

The two say being a Muslim in America presents its own set of challenges.

"When you are a Muslim outside of America, and you hear these stories of people discriminating against Islam, you honestly feel very angry and do not like them, but when I came here I realized people in America generally do not know anything about Islam," Hussain said.

Hussain said that attending an American Catholic school and taking theology classes made him realize how similar the two religions are.

"I had absolutely no problem understanding the Catholic faith because most of the fundamentals were the same," Hussain said. "That also helped me to compare the two religions when I went to other Catholic schools to talk about my country and religion."

Pratitis said she hasn't been the target of discrimination because of her faith — she said people don't usually know she's a Muslim unless she tells them — but she has heard people "talking some bad things" about Muslims and Islam.

"It's actually really rude that they blurt out their insulting opinions without doing research first," Pratitis said. "And that's what my job is here; to make them realize that extremists do not represent what we really are. Islam loves peace just like any other religion."

Pratitis and Hussain are two of six YES scholars in the Lake Country area. The other students are from Qatar, Malaysia, Yemen, and Lebanon and are attending Arrowhead, Waukesha West and Watertown high schools. All arrived in August and will return home in June.

Freedman said she learns something new from the kids every time she interacts with them — not just about them and where they're from, but about herself.

"Working with them challenges me to examine my world view, my limitations, my prejudices, my blessings," Freedman said. "More often than not, I'm struck by commonalities among us rather than by differences."

She said because the students and their families believe in intercultural understanding and communication, it also helps to keep her optimistic despite world news.

Hussain is participating in fencing and cross-country at Catholic Memorial.In fact, it was while running that Hussain had the experience that he said has had the greatest impact during his stay so far.

"One day during cross-country season, I was out of breath and slowing down, and one of the seniors passed by me and told me, 'Hey Syed, don't stop. Challenge yourself,'" Hussain said. "Those words hit my heart hard, and I still remember them when I'm doing any sport."

For Pratitis, the experience that's made the biggest impression on her so far was in the nation's capital.

"I attended the Civic Education Workshop in Washington, D.C. in early March, and it was amazing," she said. "It opened my eyes about problems all over the world, and it makes me inspired to be a social worker."

For more information about becoming a host family for YES students and AFS students, contact Kathleen Hunt-Abene at (262) 443-8691 or [email protected].

Photo: Syed from Pakistan shows a slideshow to local Girl Scouts on World Thinking Day.