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The U.S. Department of State and CIEE, the Council on International Educational Exchange recently announced that Sara Topasna of Lexington has been selected for the Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange (CBYX) scholarship for the 2023-2024 academic year.
CBYX is a bilateral exchange program of the U.S. Congress and German Bundestag (Parliament). The program is administered by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs through nonprofit implementing partners such as CIEE.
Topasna is spending the academic year in Germany living with a host family and attending high school. The program started in August when Sara traveled to Germany for a one-month intensive German language program.
Over the course of the year, she will share a bit of Lexington with their hosts in Germany. In addition to their role as citizen diplomats, CBYX participants also visit the German Bundestag, meet with German government officials, and explore the beauty and diversity of Germany. Upon return to the United States at the conclusion of the exchange program in Germany, the participants will meet with their elected representatives on Capitol Hill.
At the same time that Topasna is in Germany, a group of young German CBYX participants is spending a year in the United States. This allows American communities to get to know Germany without leaving home. Schools and families who volunteer to host these German youth help strengthen the U.S. relationship with Germany and showcase their community to international audiences. U.S. citizens interested in bringing a bit of Germany to their community should reach out to CIEE at [email protected].
For more information about CBYX, visit exchanges.state.gov/cbyx or contact CIEE at www.ciee.org/cbyx Applications for the fully funded 2024-2025 academic year opened in August. German language skills are not required to apply for the scholarship.
