Long-Lasting
Posted on Tuesday, December 8th, 2015 at 9:58 pm.
The new SWT alumni association kicks off with a big social event in Sofia.
What do you think makes an international exchange program powerful?
I think about this all the time. I feel it takes an open-minded and excited participant, a dedicated host, a sponsor who knows how to be a true resource to both, a welcoming community, and setting the right expectations. I think that with all of those elements in place, your exchange experience will exceed the expectations you set.
When that happens, I suspect you will go home feeling different, perhaps deeply changed, with new ideas and unusual aspirations. That change can be hard for your family and friends back home to understand. It is even possible that you will feel your society lacking in something that you can’t quite pinpoint. You will begin yearning to share your experiences with other people like you, not just on Facebook, but in your hometown. If you can’t find that connection, maybe you will feel lost for a little while.
Finding a network of others like you, whose exchange experiences changed them and their dreams, can be one of the most powerful and lasting parts of a program. In fact, it can be so powerful that it opens opportunities for youth around the world.
Our dynamic U.S. Embassy in Sofia, Bulgaria and a group of smart, focused and engaged Bulgarian Summer Work Travel (SWT) alumni have decided to test that notion. Working together, they created a network to help alumni find each other and keep the spark alive after they return home. The newly-formed Bulgarian Summer Work and Travel Alumni Association is creating an active network for SWT alumni to share their impressions, lessons, ideas, and professional connections.
DAS Lerner with SWT alumni in Bulgaria.
I joined the Association for their launch in November – an evening of total fun, giggling over American slang, comparisons of USA road trips, most embarrassing moments, and heartfelt testimonials about the meaningfulness of an SWT experience.
I also joined the Association for the kick-off of their first organized project: The SWT Entrepreneurship Academy. Through a competition among alumni, they selected 24 people to work together to develop the next big social entrepreneurship projects for Bulgaria.
The Entrepreneurship Academy takes on team-work and project-building.
I am so thankful that the SWT program has created the spark in these young people, and that they are now investing in themselves for the long-term. With the Association’s help, they might just keep that spark forever.
The first cohort of the SWT Entrepreneurship Academy.
Categories: Program Spotlight
| About Rebecca Pasini Deputy Assistant Secretary for Private Sector Exchange | |
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Rebecca A. Pasini joined the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Private Sector Exchanges in July 2023. A career member of the Senior Foreign Service, Class of Minister - Counselor, Ms. Pasini has been an American diplomat since 1997.
Ms. Pasini previously served as the Director of Public and Congressional Affairs in the Bureau of Consular Affairs from 2021-2023. Other Washington assignments have included positions in the Bureau of Consular Affairs, the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs, the Office of Foreign Missions, and as a liaison to the Department of Homeland Security. She has also completed multiple overseas tours, including as Minister Counselor for Consular Affairs in Islamabad, Pakistan, and as the Consular Chief in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and Belfast, Northern Ireland. Other tours included Mexico City and Kuwait.
A Maryland native, Ms. Pasini has a Ph.D. in Political Science from Indiana University, a master’s degree in National Security and Resource Strategy from the Eisenhower School, National Defense University, and an undergraduate degree from Mary Washington College.
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