On Saturday, February 3rd 2024, four French students arrived in Brookfield, Wisconsin. These four girls were matched with Brookfield Central families through the Language & Friendship Company. Our French teacher, Madame Tipton, spearheaded this event and helped everyone throughout the experience. The girls stayed until Saturday, February 24th, 2024 and left through O’Hare Airport in Chicago.
Danysha Yuku-Dogbe stayed with my family. She is a fifteen year old girl who lives in a small town about 20 minutes away from Paris. My goal was to give Danysha a true American experience. We did so many amazing things such as a Marquette University Basketball game, the Milwaukee Domes, Discovery World, the Milwaukee Art Museum, and went to a Camp Anokijig Fundraising event in Plymouth, Wisconsin. Yuku’s greatest inclination was to go to Chicago. We spent a whole day in downtown Chicago visiting Michigan Ave, Watertower Place, the Shedd Aquarium, the Palmer House, the Bean, Maggie Daley Park, Lake Shore Drive, Trump Tower, Willis Tower, the El, and the Riverwalk. And of course, some classic Chicago and Midwest foods such as deep-dish pizza, custard, and cheese curds were a must. Throughout the three weeks, Danysha experienced my everyday American life. She came with me to school everyday, any club or extracurricular meetings or events, dance class, high school ice hockey games, a Brookfield Central basketball game and potluck, shopping, watching the super bowl, going to the movies, baking and so much more.
Dany said that the largest difference between France and America, in her opinion, was our schools. “Your schools are much bigger. Your classes are very long and your lunch is so short.” She felt our periods were extremely long and boring as she could not understand most of it. Danysha also said our teachers are much nicer than hers and that her daily life is much different from mine. She was shocked when I got into the driver’s seat on her first day and she said she was still not used to it 3 weeks later. Danysha loved trying new restaurants and food, seeing different movies and tv shows, listening to new artists, and meeting my friends and family. She aspires to become a psychologist and study at a big city university in New York City or in California. This experience gave her more knowledge about America and guidance in her future.
There were three other French exchange students as well. Alia was hosted by Genevieve Hagemeyer (‘27), Avni Verma (‘25) hosted Betty, and Jade was hosted by Ange Nassalang (‘25). Each of the foreign exchange students enjoyed their stay. The most common differences between America and France schools were the rigor, length of the day, food and drink policies, and driving. The driving age in France is 18. Their school day is from 8a-5p and their classes are much more rigorous. The French students also cannot choose their own classes, and they find our electives interesting and fun. The French students were annoyed that our lunch periods were not as long as theirs, but found it interesting that we can eat and drink in class. Each of us toured with our French students around Brookfield, Milwaukee, and Chicago. All the foreign exchange students agreed on these observations.
Alia, Dany, Betty, Jade had so much fun with their host families. They got the true American experience and will have these memories for life as will the hosts. Thank you so much Madame Tipton and all involved for this incredible experience!