Who is walking the halls at United Township High School?  A Columbian?  A Brazilian?  A German?  Someone from Lebanon, or perhaps someone from Yemen?  In fact you can find all five of these at United Township this year.

         Santiago Aramburo is one of five foreign exchange students here at UTHS. Santiago will be our classmate for the first semester, and will return to Columbia in December. He is 17 years old and is a senior. He speaks English and Spanish. His favorite classes are gym and physics. Coming to UTHS was quite a change for Santiago; his old school was much smaller with about 200 students. Back in Columbia, Santiago likes to go to dance clubs, movies and to the country club with his friends. In Columbia, Santiago lives with his mom and dad and two sisters. His favorite food at home is sancocho, which is a type of soup. His favorite food here is pizza. One of the things Santiago likes about this area is, “You can actually walk to places instead of having to get a ride.”

Michel Zaiter is another of our foreign exchange students. Michel is 17 years old and is a Junior. Michel is from Lebanon, and will be returning home in June of 2010. Michel speaks four languages: English, Aramaic  French, and Spanish. His favorite class is History. Michel says, “Back home I learned about world history and Lebanon’s history, and now coming here, I learn about American history.” Michel enjoyed playing soccer in Lebanon and now plays for UTHS. In Lebanon, Michel has 6 brothers and 1 sister. Three of his brothers and his sister are married. He has two nephews that he misses very much. In Lebanon, his favorite food is Taboli, a type of fruit salad, and here his favorite food is cheese pizza.

Annika Kostedde is our foreign exchange student from Brambauer, Germany. She is 16 years old and will be here for the entire year, and will return home next summer. Annika can speak German, English and French. Her favorite class is history. Annika’s school in Germany is smaller than UTHS.  

Annika is in the Anime club and is considering trying out for soccer in the fall. In Germany, Annika lives with her mom and dad. She likes hanging out with friends on the weekends. Her favorite food in Germany is “whatever my grandmother makes.”  Her favorite food here is tacos.

Other foreign exchange students at UTHS include Ahmed Al-Katheri of Aden, Yemen; Ahmen Al-kply of Abyan, Yemen; and Isabela Santos of Brazil.  Ahmen Al-Katheri is staying with Darin and Christine Manson.  Ahmen Al-kply is staying with Susan and Steve Painter.  Isabela is with John, Tricia, Stephanie, and Shannon Thodos.