U.S. Program Helps Exchange Groups Bring in More Youths

In 1955, only three foreign exchange student programs sent American high school students abroad and placed their foreign counterparts with families in the United States.

But in 1981, President Reagan created the International Youth Exchange to finance and develop exchange groups through the U.S. Information Agency.

Today, more than 70 sponsor groups place high school exchange students in American homes, according to Ray Plutko, commissioner of the California Interscholastic Federation Southern Section, which comprises 578 high schools.

About 75,000 foreign students from at least 66 countries make educational visits every year, said Randal Zimmermann, managing director of the International Exchange Assn. in Washington.

Along with the increase in student exchanges have come problems. Some fly-by-night sponsors have abandoned their students and absconded with the money for their return airplane tickets, Zimmermann said.

The surge in sponsor groups has also caused an administrator’s nightmare of ambiguous academic and athletic eligibilities.

As far as the CIF’s Southern Section is concerned, students who arrive through the biggest locally active sponsors--AFS International/Intercultural Programs and Youth for Understanding--and nine other well-known programs, are immediately eligible for competition.

But for exchange students from about 60 smaller, newer sponsor groups, the staff has to devote as much as three or four weeks of research--including using a translator to interpret the students’ transcripts--to determine eligibility.

The bottom line is: Did the students compete in a sport at their home high school in the past year? Those who have, like American transfers, are ineligible for a year while establishing residency.

Only within the past year has any broad degree of regulation over sponsor groups been imposed. In April, 1985, representatives of leading sponsor groups and school administration associations formed the Council on Standards For International Educational Travel. It recently published a list of 20 approved sponsor groups.