about

ABOUT

ABOUT US

Rotary Youth Exchange in District 5400

Rotary Youth Exchange has been a central program within District 5400 for decades. We have a rich history of participation from host families, students, and Rotarians.

"If every 17-year-old had a chance to be a Rotary Youth Exchange Student, there would be no more war."

Carl Wilhelm Stenhammar of Sweden said this when he was the President of Rotary International in 2005-06 and we believe it too. In fact, this sentiment fuels the motivation for our work with this program: world peace and understanding through one-on-one, international relationships.

Rotary Youth Exchange is a volunteer-driven, true one-to-one exchange. What does this mean? We have over a hundred volunteers in our district who freely give their time to provide international opportunities for students from our local communities as well as for those from other countries who come visit us. For every student we receive, we provide an opportunity for a local student to gain international experience.

Being a Rotary Youth Exchange student has opened up a whole new world of opportunities for me... I am so grateful to Rotary and all that it has helped me accomplish. I think everyone should be able to have the opportunity to go in exchange and experience the world. Thank you Rotary, for changing my life.

—Gabriel, from Idaho to Italy 2015-16

[Going on exchange] teaches us to be more flexible and learn to accept others for their differences. I believe that tolerance is key to finding peace in the world and within ourselves, and exchange is a perfect opportunity to learn tolerance and responsibility.

—Ashley, from Idaho to Austria 2015-16

Students hosted in District 5400
2013 to 2023

126

Families who have hosted 2013 to 2023
Thank you!

237

Students sent abroad
2013 to 2023

1 24

Participating
District 5400 Volunteers
2013 to 2023
Thank you!

104

Best Practices

Our district leadership team

continually seeks out best practices

from our peers and partners in the USA and around the world.

We regularly attend

related conferences and trainings, including those with

Rotary International (rotary.org) and
the North American Youth Exchange Network (NAYEN).

Volunteers

We simply could not do this

important work without volunteers:

host families, Rotarians, community leaders, students, teachers, past participants... the more of us the better able we can achieve our goals.

We love our volunteers and we would love to have you join us.

Certifications

We are US State Department approved J-1 Visa exchange program through our membership in Western States Student Exchange, Inc. (WESSEX), which maintains accreditation with the Council on Standards for International Education and Travel (CSIET).

We are also certified through Rotary International, which enables us to exchange with hundreds of other certified districts throughout the world.