Helping Aiken citizens understand the history and culture of their partner cities – and vice versa – is at the heart of PIF’s programs. PIF’s international student and teacher exchanges provide once-in-a-lifetime opportunities for young people and adults to make new friends, gain new perspectives on the world, and expand their cultural and intellectual horizons.

   
   
 

The Student Exchange Program

Every other summer since 1997, Partners in Friendship has been sending students from Aiken-area high schools to Aiken’s Italian partner city, Orvieto. In the alternate years, young people from Orvieto have come as PIF-sponsored exchange students to Aiken. The next group of Italian teens is scheduled to arrive here in July 2008. Partners in Friendship members are eagerly anticipating their visit.

Unlike many high school trips that offer sightseeing opportunities only, PIF’s two-week program is carried out as a true cultural exchange. Participants live with host families, taking part in the daily life of the town and in local customs. During their stay they may attend classes and visit art galleries, museums, and other educational sites. They are immersed in the exchange city’s history, commerce, cuisine, architecture, and language.

But the exchanges are also meant to be fun! The over 100 high schoolers from Aiken who have participated in the exchange program over the last ten years say that they have been warmly welcomed and made to feel at home by their host families, who have often gone out of their way to arrange new experiences (such as weekend trips to the beach) that they thought the students would enjoy. The American kids have also had a ball learning how to socialize with their fellow teens in Orvieto.The opportunities for social interaction created by the program have brought about many close and lasting friendships.

To qualify for the program, students must be rising sophomores, rising juniors, or rising seniors in Aiken County public or private schools, must meet certain academic and disciplinary standards, and must go through a written selection process. PIF encourages all interested students to apply.

For further information, contact one of the program’s chaperones, Linda Muse at South Aiken High (641-2600) or Francesca Pataro at Aiken High School (641-2500).