Meet the J-1 Volunteers Behind the New York City Marathon
Posted on Tuesday, November 8th, 2016 at 9:37 pm.By Lynette Evans-Tiernan, Communications Manager for the Exchange Visitor Program
Moira Cacia and Angela Mininni (J-1 au pairs from Italy) we‘re very excited to see so many Italians running the race and happy to cheer them on.
On Sunday, November 6, more than 1,000 J-1 international exchange visitors – students, interns, au pairs, and research scholars – volunteered at rest and water stops along the 2016 TCS New York City Marathon course, supporting the 50,000 runners from over 135 countries who ran the race. Meet some of the volunteers and read about their experiences:
Categories: Program Spotlight
A Life-Changing Journey: Travelling, Cultures, Growth, Friends and Family
Posted on Wednesday, November 2nd, 2016 at 9:06 pm.By Garazi Alkorta, J-1-Au Pair from Spain
A version of this story was originally published on Expert Au Pair
Stunning views of the city from the Top of the Rock (Rockefeller Center)
When I decided to start this journey called the au-pair experience, being more than 5,000 miles away from home for a year, on my own, living and sharing experiences with strangers sounded like a scary idea. Let’s jump into the car and travel through this – not always so easy – road that turned out to be one of the best experiences of my life.
Categories: Program Spotlight
The Great Escape: J-1 Designs Scavenger Hunt Experience
Posted on Thursday, October 27th, 2016 at 9:07 pm.By Petar Dragnic, J-1 Summer Work Travel Alumni from Serbia
Petar and Andreaa monitoring players in “Escape Room”
I participated in the Summer Work and Travel program in 2013 and 2014, and I can say that participating on this program was the best decision I made in my life! I spent two summers working in the Asticou Inn, a fine-dining restaurant in Northeast Harbor, Maine. It is a small town on the beautiful Mount Desert Island, which is a home of Acadia National Park. I had a chance to meet a lot of great people from America – and also from other parts of the world. Besides having fun with my friends, I had the opportunity to learn a lot of new skills related to customer service and business management.
Categories: Program Spotlight
The Countdown Begins! J-1s Will Volunteer at New York City Marathon
Posted on Tuesday, October 25th, 2016 at 9:52 pm.By Lynette Evans-Tiernan, Communications Manager for the J-1 Exchange Visitor Program
J-1 Visa Exchange Visitors Volunteer at the 2015 TCS NYC Marathon
We’ve officially started the countdown to the New York City Marathon, Sunday, November 6.
Why are we at the State Department so excited about this event? Well, more than 1,000 J-1 exchange visitors – students, interns, au pairs, and research scholars – will be volunteering at rest and water stops along the race course to support the 50,000 runners from over 135 countries who will run the race. These J-1 students will be the largest single group of volunteers at the race, onsite to ensure the marathon runs smoothly. In additional, several J-1 exchange visitors will be running the marathon.
Categories: Program Spotlight
Ideas from the Our Ocean, One Future Leadership Summit
Posted on Wednesday, October 12th, 2016 at 3:01 pm.By Mariliis Eensalu, J-1 Intern from Estonia
Climate change affects everything, including the Ocean. The cause for this change is not fully understood; nevertheless, humankind can work towards reducing the ecological footprint. On September 15-16, I had the pleasure of attending “Our Ocean, One Future Leadership Summit” hosted by Secretary of State John Kerry in Washington, D.C. The conference was organized to engage the next generation of political leaders, entrepreneurs, and scientists to identify solutions and commit to actions to protect our ocean – so it can continue to sustain us all in the future.
Mariliis Eensalu at Our Ocean, One Future Leadership Summit at the State Department.
Categories: Program Spotlight
A Delightful Internship in Horticulture
Posted on Friday, October 7th, 2016 at 3:06 pm.By Kata, J-1 Intern from Austria
Katya rotating plant racks at her internship at Plant Delights.
Going to another country and experiencing their way of life was something I always desired. At a very young age, I did several exchanges to countries like New Zealand and Spain, but I was never interested in going to the United States. Nevertheless, I think it was meant to be that I heard about this great nursery called Plant Delights, a mail order nursery that exists to create an amazing botanical garden in the so-called triangle area of North Carolina. Having spent most of my youth in a specialty nursery, I knew this was the place to be to receive further training for my horticultural career.
In 2015, I started doing more research on Plant Delights as part of my master’s thesis on networks and knowledge transfer in the perennial business. It only made sense to include this nursery in my research since it is internationally known for its exotic and highly rare perennials. After a one day visit to this nursery and botanical garden, I knew that this is where I wanted to do an internship. I talked to my intern coordinator and was connected with J-1 sponsor Ohio State University, who helped me obtain a J-1 visa. After a lot of paperwork, I was ready for departure on February 1. When I arrived in the United States, my coordinator picked me up from the airport, took me to my future home and showed me around.
Categories: Program Spotlight
Seeing the Business Side of High End Retail Sparks Ideas for J-1 Interns
Posted on Tuesday, October 4th, 2016 at 9:14 pm.By J-1 Intern Anna Martynova from Russia
Originally published on InterExchange Blog
J-1s admire jewelry by Turkish designer Sevan Bicakçi
As a marketing intern, I am very curious about marketing, branding and advertising of industry leading companies. So, I was thrilled to receive an invitation to InterExchange’s cultural meetup at Barneys New York Madison Avenue location. Luxury retail is one of the most challenging and interesting industries for marketing, especially in New York City, and I was very excited to get a chance to learn more about it.
Barneys is more than a luxury department store in NYC: it’s an iconic store that has become a part of fashion’s history. It has built a worldwide market presence and now has customers all over the world. But I had no idea how the company got to where it is – and I was looking forward to finding out.
Categories: Program Spotlight
Living a Dream
Posted on Friday, September 30th, 2016 at 2:56 pm.By Binish Desai, Secondary School Student from India
Blog originally published on Rotary Voices
Binish Desai and the brick his company makes from industrial waste.
India is my Nation
Valsad is my Station
Helping is my Aim
Binish is my Name
I’ll never forget the introduction I used as an exchange student.
Categories: Program Spotlight
A J-1 Experience in Sales Opens Entrepreneurial Doors
Posted on Tuesday, September 27th, 2016 at 2:17 pm.By Evelina Prodnova, J-1 Summer Work Travel Alumni from Bulgaria
Evelina organizes a monthly business meeting to discuss challenges for women in the workplace.
My first summer as a J-1 exchange student was in 2007. I was a first year at university and had worked the previous four summers in the Sea Resorts in Bulgaria as a shop assistant. I learned about the Southwestern Advantage program by chance. It sounded weird and different. I was going to gain communication skills by selling educational products door-to-door. I decided to take the chance as I was selected to be part of the program for that summer even though it sounded tough (and not appealing to knock on doors).
I ended up doing really well and was asked to take part in the management program. I ended up working with the company for six years, gaining much more than expected: mentors who helped me develop my leadership potential, skills obtained through management and sales training, and experience gained from recruiting teams and leading sales organizations – all in the ages when I was developing myself as a person, as a professional. Read More ›
Categories: Program Spotlight
J-1’s Accept the ‘Be a Changemaker Challenge’
Posted on Thursday, September 22nd, 2016 at 9:29 pm.By Kate Verey, CIEE Senior Director of Work & Travel USA
2016 Civic Leadership Summit participants contributing their ideas!
This August a select group of 62 students from the Summer Work Travel (SWT) program gathered at American University in Washington, D.C. for the CIEE Civic Leadership Summit, a three-day event that brings together passionate, young leaders from around the world for a dynamic exchange on leadership, social entrepreneurship, and cultural understanding. This group of Fellows represented 33 countries from three different designated J-1 sponsor organizations (CENET, Spirit and CIEE).
A highlight of the Summit was a daylong workshop called the ‘Be a Changemaker Challenge’ led by Ashoka’s Youth Venture, an organization that inspires and supports teams of young people to launch and lead their own community benefiting initiatives. During the Challenge, Fellows identified their passions to create change for social issues, and then worked in groups to develop plans for launching their own social ventures in their home countries. Read More ›
Categories: Participants, 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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