Since 2002, American families have opened their homes to over 8,000 international, Muslim students through the YES program. Funded by the State Department, YES provides scholarships for these high-school students to spend one academic year in the United States, and by all reports, the program is a success with students returning to their home country and becoming active community leaders, Fulbright scholars, and emissaries for exchange programs.
Lisa Choate, executive vice president of the American Councils for International Education, says another side benefit to YES is that many host families visit their students in their home countries, which fosters even more understanding between different cultural and societies – the main goal of the program.
