Phone:
202.898.0950
Fax:
202.842.0885
Mailing Address:
1015 18th Street, NW, Suite 1000
Washington, DC 20036
Program Highlights
Serbia Youth Leadership Program, 2007
"Before the program, I didn’t think about myself as a leader, but after this I am self-confident enough to believe that I can change some people’s behavior."
The Serbia Youth Leadership Program (SYLP) is an educational exchange initiative of the U.S. State Department, administered by World Learning’s Visitor Exchange Program in cooperation with Civic Initiatives in Belgrade. The main goals of the program are to develop a cadre of young adults in Serbia who have a strong sense of civic responsibility, a commitment to community development, an awareness of current & global issues, and strong interpersonal leadership skills; to foster relationships among youth from different ethnic, religious, and national groups in Serbia; and to promote mutual understanding, respect and collaboration between the United States and Serbia.
Through three one-month exchange projects in the United States throughout 2007, over 70 high school students and teachers from Serbia studied such themes as grassroots activism, ethnic tolerance, rule of law, religious freedom, the role of local and municipal governments, and student government. In a return visit, U.S. teenagers and trainers will travel to Serbia to reconnect with the Serbian participants and work with them on follow-on projects that serve the needs of their communities.
"I will be active in my community, I will try to use all skills that I learned here to improve the position of youth in my community."
Each of the three projects consists of three phases: pre-departure activities, the U.S. exchange programs, and follow-on activities. The program begins with a weeklong Orientation and Leadership Camp at World Learning’s SIT campus in Brattleboro, Vermont. The group is then divided into two subgroups for the community program in cities across the U.S. The community programs focus on civic participation at the community level, mentoring by community and NGO leaders, creating a research project, debating program themes, and community service programs.
Highlights include high school attendance for one week, home stays with local families, and a weekend field trip to a nearby state park or capital city. The final program segment, a Re-entry Camp in Washington, DC, reunites each group for debriefing, follow-on activity planning, and evaluation. The follow-on program will provide small grants for student-led community service activities, and will include several workshops integrating all of the program components, supervisory visits, visits by American students and adults to Serbia, and a final national conference to reunite all the Serbian project participants.
Brazil Youth Ambassadors, January 2007
"It is not the government that makes a country, it’s the people."
In partnership with the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy in Brazil, Delphi International (now Visitor Exchange Program) coordinated the 2007 Brazil Youth Ambassadors Program (YAP), a two-week educational exchange opportunity in the United States for twenty-five Brazilian high school students ages 15-18. The main goals of the program were to increase mutual understanding between the peoples of the United States and Brazil; strengthen ties between the two countries by demonstrating the educational and cultural interests, developments and achievements of the U.S.; counter possible negative misconceptions of the U.S. by presenting an authentic and positive image of the country, and; support and promote Brazilian public education.
Twenty-five participants were selected based on academic achievement, community service, attendance at a public school and English language competency. Participants learn about U.S. society and government, visit historical sites, participate in interactive and experiential activities, and attend local high schools with their host brother or sister. They begin the program in Washington, D.C. and then travel in small groups for home stay experiences in their host cities, including Cleveland, Ohio; Charlotte, North Carolina; Freeport, Illinois; Huntsville, Alabama; and, Tulsa Oklahoma. At the end, they return to Washington, D.C. to share experiences, learning and impressions before returning home.
Global Neighbor Youth Delegation Program, June 2006
Delphi International Program (now Visitor Exchange Program) of World Learning, in conjunction with the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State (ECA), managed and implemented the Global Neighbor Youth Delegation Program to coincide with the FIFA World Cup 2006. The program consisted of two phases: the U.S. exchange program in Washington, DC and New York City, and attendance at a World Cup match between Ghana and the U.S. in Nuremberg, Germany. The major goals of the program were to engage youth from a variety of countries in a cross-border dialogue by highlighting the major role that soccer plays in countries around the world; illustrate a spirit of cooperation by juxtaposing sports competition with building bridges of understanding; and provide young soccer players with an opportunity to discover how success in athletics, with an emphasis on teamwork, respect and leadership, can be translated into development of life skills and achievement in the classroom.
Participants included 30 young soccer players, ages from 13 to 18 years old, from the following countries: Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Bahrain, Lebanon, Morocco, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, and Bolivia. Appointments and activities included: DC United training session, NY Red Bulls-LA Galaxy MLS match, Headfirst/Positive Coaching Alliance, conflict resolution seminar at Georgetown University, Boys and Girls Club of DC, mock Supreme Court session focusing on equal access to sports activities and education, VOA interview, and various cultural activities.
