Toms River High School South welcomed 14 students and two teachers from the Wilhelm-Hauff-Realschule in Pfullingen, Germany for a two-week stay this past October. The students participated in an exchange program run by Timothy DeMarco and Anne Walsh. Students live with host families in the area and attend High School South.
Cultural excursions are also part of the program, including trips to the boardwalk, Island Beach State Park and New York City. Of course, attending football games and the Halloween parade are on the itinerary, as well as participating in the many school-spirit-related activities High School South has to offer.
The 14 American participants from High School South will then travel to Germany this July for the second half of the exchange. They will spend two weeks living with families, attending school and going on cultural excursions to nearby attractions. The goal of this exchange program, now in its fourth year, is to provide students with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience another culture as no tourist can, to foster cultural understanding and improve language skills.
The exchange started in 2015, when Toms River High School South was chosen by the D.A.I. (Deutsche Amerikanische Institut) in Tübingen, Germany, as the one high school in the entire United States to participate in the program. The exchange was funded under the agreement that both schools would continue to carry on the program every other year. Despite budget cuts, global pandemics, and at times unstable political climates, the exchange has carried on with no end in sight.
This exchange is particularly personal for DeMarco, as he had the privilege of teaching the German students while on a short-term sabbatical this past May through July. DeMarco was a guest at the Wilhelm-Hauff-Realschule, where he taught a preparation class for the exchange, focusing on the American school system, cultural differences between the two countries, and the local history of Toms River and New Jersey.
DeMarco also had the opportunity to teach English to Ukrainian refugees as well as shadow teachers in a variety of subjects ranging from fifthh grade English to geography to bilingual physical education.
“For anyone interested in starting their own exchange program, I cannot recommend it enough,” DeMarco said. “It is a lot of work, but seeing the students interact with one another and hearing families share their experiences makes it all worthwhile.”
DeMarco recommends researching organizations that help set up exchange programs, but ultimately believes the best program is the one you set up yourself.
“There are organizations that help set up exchanges, such as the German American Partnership Program (GAPP), but I personally recommend organizing one on your own. Reach out to a school in Germany, or wherever you’d like to establish a partnership, and create your own rules. It takes time and effort, but with each exchange it grows easier to organize and run.”