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What Is Exchange Day?

Formerly known as “J Day,” the annual celebration of international education and exchanges known as Exchange Day brings together participants of the Exchange Visitor Program to #EatPlayGive as they participate in organized community service projects.

Since its launch in 2014, the celebration has grown significantly. In 2018, there were 47 J Day events held across 24 states and Washington, D.C.

But though the newly-renamed Exchange Day is a large-scale annual celebration taking place throughout the U.S., the concept behind it is very simple.

Exchange participants, alumni, and Cultural Vistas staff celebrated J Day in 2018 by assembling 720 children hygiene kits and donating 700+ diapers to the Greater DC Diaper Bank.

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Posted on:

July 1 2019

Author:

Piotr Narel

Exchange Tips

How to Teach in the USA on Any Budget

Unanticipated expenses while traveling abroad in any country can lead to a cloud of financial gloom hanging over you regardless of weather. In the case of teaching in a country with a particularly high cost of living like the U.S., being financially aware and making a realistic budget before your trip is one of the best ways to avoid unnecessary stress during your exchange experience.

Teach USA participants who plan ahead and make a budget can afford to be cool teachers because they aren’t stressing about their finances.

As a longtime J-1 Visa sponsor, we at Cultural Vistas are experts at helping people budget for U.S.-based exchange programs like Teach USA. Before you go to teach in the U.S., take a lesson from us first!

Read on to find out the best ways to approach budgeting as an international teacher in the U.S.

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Posted on:

June 26 2019

Author:

Piotr Narel

Alumni Spotlight, Participant Experiences

Finding Health and Home in Cologne After CBYX

Growing up in the U.S., I felt detached from the rest of the world despite a strong desire to explore it. Living abroad was a far-fetched dream, an abstract concept. It was further complicated by the fact that I had neither a specific place in mind nor any notion of how I would even begin the process of moving somewhere new. If you’re someone who feels this way now, I am here to tell you that your dream of going abroad is possible. It is not a question of whether you can do it, but rather a question of when and where.

Five years ago, I would never have thought that I would be living in Germany and applying to a German-language medical school, but today, I am doing exactly that!

Many people feel most at home where they grew up but I found mine abroad thanks to CBYX. Above is a view of the two spires of the Cologne Cathedral. For me and many other Cologne residents, these spires are a symbol of home.

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Posted on:

June 26 2019

Author:

Katherine Dodel

Participant Experiences

Vistans Celebrate the Past and Present of West Coast Diversity

In what has become an annual tradition, Cultural Vistas staff met with Exchange Visitor Program participants completing their J-1 Visa internships or traineeships on the West Coast during two get-togethers in June. Whereas one event showcased the present-day diversity of our local participants, the other reminded us of the history of immigration which helped shape the West Coast into the culturally diverse and inclusive region that it is today.

West Coast Vistans arrive on Angel Island, known as “The Ellis Island of the West.”

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Posted on:

June 20 2019

Author:

Christine Paiva

Features

Women Leaders from Central Europe and USA to Meet at Transatlantic Summit

Polish American Women Entrepreneurs (PAWE) is working with Cultural Vistas to make the voices of women in business across Central Europe strong enough to reach across the Atlantic with the USA-Central Europe Women in Business Summit taking place October 17 at the Tribeca Rooftop in New York City.

We are eager to cultivate opportunities for women in business across all of Central Europe and the USA and have established an Honorary Committee to help organize this important event, including the Embassy of the Slovak Republic in Washington, D.C. as well as the Consulates General of Poland, the Czech Republic, Germany, and Hungary in New York.

By convening over 350 individuals representing governments, international associations supporting women in business, and business leaders from Fortune 500 companies to startups, the USA-Central Europe Women in Business Summit promises to be the largest and most important event of its kind.

Public Speaker at a Conference
Early-bird Summit tickets are now available for a limited time. Click here to join us on Thursday, October 17.

Read more of “Women Leaders from Central Europe and USA to Meet at Transatlantic Summit”

Posted on:

June 18 2019

Author:

Agata Golubiewska