Stories From the Field
New Faces
Meet just a few of the people who were part of American Exchange Project adventures in first-time host communities this summer
Tyler Nice (left)
Tyler Nice
Springfield, Oregon
On Tyler’s first-year exchange itinerary: driving to the Pacific coast for a beach bonfire, scaling the summit of Spencer Butte, and racing at the Night of Miles track event at the University of Oregon (alma mater of a Nike cofounder). Neighbors lent support, especially through donated meals—including a post-run pizza feast at campus joint Track Town. For Tyler, a social studies teacher at Springfield High School, American Exchange Project was a winning idea: “I’m really proud to be a part of this,” he said. “I know our traveling students are going to take a little bit of Oregon back home with them to the Bronx, Ohio, South Texas, Tennessee, New Hampshire, and so many other places.”
ZANIYAH N.
Wake Forest, North Carolina → Portsmouth, New Hampshire
Zaniyah’s exchange was all about crossing boundaries: from the South to New England; from a rapidly-growing suburb near the Research Triangle to a town of about 20,000; from the hometown she’d grown up in to a town where she anticipated being in the minority as a Black student. But that was part of why she signed up for American Exchange Project. “I really had to put myself out there,” she said. “I can’t give [friends back home] an accurate representation of my experience if I’m still standoffish.” Her takeaway: “We’re coming from different backgrounds. We all have different experiences...but we’re all kids at the end of the day.”
Zaniyah N.
Goblin Valley
JENNI CURRIT
Salt Lake City, Utah
Jenni and her family opened their home to two boys from completely different parts of the country: Kenyon, from Washington, D.C., and Grayson, from rural Verona, Wisconsin. She joined with other SLC hosts to provide driving and day trip support as their students gazed out on the “hoodoos” (stubby rock spires) of Goblin Valley, rafted the Weber River, and explored city landmark Temple Square. One of Jenni’s visitors declared it the best week of their life. The Currit family is already planning to host next year. “I wish I had time to tell you all of the amazing things that we saw happen in our group,” Jenni said. “[American Exchange Project is] doing life-changing and nation-changing work. I can’t wait for the day that this is in every school in the USA!”
THE BEHR-SWANSON FAMILY
Chestertown, Maryland
As soon as Alden Swanson saw American Exchange Project CEO David McCullough III speak at the Masters of Scale Summit in 2024, she knew she needed to bring the program to her hometown. Alden and David met at the conference for innovative leaders, where Alden’s parents, Matthew Swanson and Robbi Behr, were representing their nonprofit, Busload of Books. One year later, Alden ripped open a Travel Week reveal letter and set out for Orem, Utah, and Matthew and Robbi introduced host student Zeke to Rehoboth Beach and the goats of the Kent County Fair—all moments the family documented in lively daily vlogs. “It really warmed my heart to see how special my hometown is through the travel students’ joy in experiencing it,” Alden said of her Hometown Week. “It’s funny how much you take for granted until you hear someone else’s interpretation of it.”
Alden Swanson
Angelle Adams (second from left)
Angelle Adams
Lafayette, Louisiana
As American Exchange Project students went around Angelle’s table at their farewell dinner, each one made a promise to carry out after their exchange. One said they’d be bringing Southern hospitality home; another talked about reducing their screen time; another spoke of letting the kindness they’d received in Lafayette guide their own Hometown Week. Angelle’s host student, Lily from Orem, Utah, left something special as well: a card with individual notes for each family member describing what she’d remember the most about them. Angelle had previously hosted French exchange students in her home, but the emotional depth of her week as an American Exchange Project host parent stood out. “We just fell in love with Lily…the night before she left, she gave me a big hug and she was crying and it really impacted her. …American Exchange Project is outside [students’] comfort zone, and I think it broadens their horizons.”
MAYOR RICK WEST
Chesapeake, Virginia
None of the students visiting Mayor West’s city for their Travel Week had Waffle House (a local staple) in their hometowns. What’s more, 75 percent had never flown alone before or traveled to a Southern state, and 25 percent had never set foot on the East Coast. The mayor had a chance to join Chesapeake’s first-ever exchange for students’ trip to the Great Bridge Battlefield Museum, which tells the story of the first American victory of the Revolutionary War. The day was a reminder for Mayor West of why he’s proud of his town. “To see kids, particularly coming from different areas of our country, come and see Chesapeake and all that we have to offer...it’s just one of the highlights of my doing what I do as mayor,” he said. “It’s wonderful.”
Mayor Rick West (right)
Jasmin H. (third from left)
JASMIN H.
Hollywood, California → Wake Forest, North Carolina
Before American Exchange Project, Jasmin reflected, “I was that narrow-minded kind of person where I was like, ‘I already know everything.’...I felt like I might not bond with as many people from other places.” But during Travel Week in Wake Forest, she says, “I felt so comfortable, and I felt like I had somewhere where I belonged.” Between campus walks around Research Triangle universities and swimming in the Atlantic, Jasmin’s group kept a running dialogue going about their backgrounds and families. And one food—able to be offered at breakfast, lunch, or dinner in North Carolina—truly surprised her: “I have never actually seen a proper biscuit…I feel like in L.A. you don’t have that.”
“Everyone was so willing to let down their guard and just be who they were…Being able to experience that with people you’ve never met from all over the country was incredible.”
—Sullivan W. (Arvada, Colorado → New York, New York)