By taking the leap and inviting an international exchange student into their families, each host mom will . . .
- Enrich the lives of their children, family members, and communities by exposing them to another culture
- Make a lifelong impact on the life of an exchange student
- Expand their own definition of family
. . . all while making their students feel loved and supported each and every day. To all of the current and past host moms, thank you for being a part of our global family.
Host mom Crystal (Illinois):
“Our family has had some of the best experiences of our lives because of iE!
It truly was one of the best years of our lives! Our oldest son Tyler also did the iE summer immersion last summer and spent 3 weeks in Spain with Susi and her family. He loved it so much that he wasn’t ready to come home after 3 weeks.”
Kelli (Minnesota) on host daughter Medea
“iE brought us together, and we now call her family, our family.”
Alyssa (Virginia) on host son Timo
“We got super freaking lucky — he is so well mannered, mature, he mixes well with us and what we do . . . He’s been super awesome with both of our sons, and we’re definitely going to miss him when he leaves.”
Deanna (Tennessee)
“We have thoroughly enjoyed having Marie as a part of our family.”
Rachael (Virginia) on host daughter Alice
“I’m super busy, and sometimes I feel like I’m not there for them enough, but my daughter and my student made me a cake “just because we love you.” So I’m like, ‘well, I guess I’m doing something right!’ Seeing your family’s bond and the life-long connections that you have with them makes it all worth it.”
Carol (Wisconsin)
“We’ve hosted seven or eight students in our home, but we had so many more than felt like they were ‘ours'”
Peggy (Georgia) on host son Miguel
“What a wild ride for 10 months! This young man from Spain stole my heart and he is ‘mi cuarto hijo.’ Hosting an exchange student is amazing. It was 95% awesome and 5% yelling ‘do your homework!’ Apparently, kids slacking on homework is an international problem.”
Tara (Virginia) on host sons (and brothers!) Nicolas and Oscar
“We have really enjoyed hosting both boys for different reasons. We even traveled to Spain last summer to stay with their family and they hosted us for 10 days. We have formed an amazing bond with their family and consider them family now.”
Rebecca (Wisconsin) on host daughter Marta
“Especially if you’re a family that has one child, it’s just cool to have someone that your kiddo creates that bond with”
Marie (Minnesota) on host daughter Alyssa
“Hosting an exchange student has been a wonderful experience! It has been very educational to learn about her Switzerland’s education and government systems. We have truly enjoyed having Alyssa as part of the family and sharing both countries’ traditions with each other.”