Exchange student trades Ukraine for Bonners Ferry

BONNERS FERRY — In a diverse world that has grown closer through the internet and social media, there is no substitution for talking face to face with someone from a different part of world and a culture different from ours, especially for young adults. In the informative years, when ideas are still being formed and minds are open to learning about different cultures, the ability to learn about, and discuss a broad spectrum of cultural differences and similarities, from food to politics, is a fantastic opportunity.

Exchange student programs offer this experience. There are different programs that offer a student exchange, including the Future Leaders Exchange (FLEX) Program. The goals of FLEX are to engage students and grow relationships.

FLEX students must compete in rigorous rounds of testing to be chosen for the program, must have good grades, and have had a minimum of three years of studying English. On average, only one in 40 applicants will be selected for the program.

One student who passed the tests is 16 year old Tetyana Lysyuk, who has traveled all the way from Ukraine and is spending this year in Bonners Ferry. She would be a senior in high school in Ukraine, but she is participating as a junior at Bonners Ferry High School.

“I like it a lot,” said Lysyuk. “It’s a huge chance to see different cultures, to see different people, to be in different place, and just see how different things can be.”

Lysyuk explained that FLEX alumni shared a sentence with her in the beginning that has helped her experience: “It is not better, not worse, just different.”

“But still I compare a lot of things to how it is in Ukraine, and there are a lot of things that I would change,” said Lysyuk, who comes from a city called Rivne, that has a population of about 250,000 people and has a great public transportation system.

“I understand that this is a small city, but if I want to get somewhere, I need to drive,” said Lysyuk. “I can’t drive and I feel so dependent because I need to be sure that my plans don’t intercept with my host family’s plans. I can’t walk because there are sidewalks only in downtown.”

Her host family suggested that she could walk on the road, but Lysyuk does not feel comfortable with that option.

“I just don’t feel safe because we don’t do that in my country,” she explained. ”I feel like, at least one bus, it would be so helpful.”

“People say that it is independence because you have car. You are independent from everything because you can just jump in your car, but what if you can’t have a car, or you can’t afford it, or you just broke the car. And then you are dependent on everything. For me, independence is when you can choose,” said Lysyuk.

One of the most beneficial lessons to be learned when sharing different cultures: it is OK to have different views.

“They share Republican values which is also very different from my country,” Lysyuk said about her host family. “We are more liberal. So it is very interesting to see how they feel about things and how they see some different things. Usually we disagree on almost everything because of political views and religion, and just how things are supposed to be. Still, it is interesting. It is a new experience ... and that is why I am here.”

Lysyuk is welcoming some of the changes, particularly when it comes to the school system.

“School is different because we can’t pick classes,” she explained. “Here, I have to pick science, and then I pick what I want. I don’t pick something that I don’t like. If I want more art, I take more art. If I want math, I take math.”

Lysyuk loves the creative process of art, so she is currently taking two art classes. She also plans to attend college after high school and become an IT Technologist, so she is enjoying taking a programming class.

“I like how the teachers actually teach the material, how they talk about it, and how they make their class — it is a lot more interesting,” she said. “They try to be on one wave with us.”

She explained that her history teacher back home just lectures for 45 minutes and gives daily quizzes.

“I like history, but to pass the exam, our history in Ukraine, how they teach it is so different. It’s harsh,” explained Lysyuk. “Here, Mr. Warner shows us videos, makes projects, does trashketball — which is so much fun. At the same time, he gives us outlines and study guides.”

The FLEX program students are not only here to learn our culture, but also to educate others about their culture, and “culture” is one of the things that Lysyuk is most proud of about her home country.

“Our culture is really old. Our capital is more than one thousand years old. So you can imagine that culture,” she said.

“Our religion started from when we had a lot of different gods- it wasn’t Christianity,” explained Lysyuk. “We have Christianity now, but we are superstitious too, because of those old cultures that we had. There are some people that don’t believe it, but there are some people who do. It is interesting.”

Lysyuk also reflected on the differences of food, brought on by cultural and geological influences.

“All our food is time requiring. You can’t just throw it in the oven and come get it in 30 minutes,” she explained. “At least an hour, you will just be standing there having something cooking.”

Lysyuk remarked on eating styles, explaining that lunch is the biggest meal of the day, and she often would only eat once in a day. Also, they tend to eat far less meat, both in frequency and portion size.

“My country is rich on grains. So that is why we have a lot of bread,” she explained. “We have a lot of flour and milk. We have a lot of countryside too — so eggs — so we make a lot of dough. A lot of things are made with dough, and to make dough is time requiring too.”

One favorite that she has shared with people here is Varenyky, a filled dumpling, also called pierogi in other countries.

“We have them with potatoes, we have them with cabbage, we have the with cherries, we have them with blueberries, we have them with cottage cheese, and make them salty with spinach, or have them with cottage cheese and make it more like cream cheese with raisins, apples, everything. Just whatever you have in your house, you can put that inside, and then you boil them,” said Lysyuk.

“At Christmas she gave us a taste of her Ukrainian culture: Varenyky with a surprise, dumplings with surprise filling and maybe a coin inside,” said Lysyuk’s dance coach, Lisa Dirks.

Lysyuk participated on the dance team, the Badgerettes, after having taken gymnastics for many years when she was younger. Dirks said that she was, “so much fun to have on the dance team.”

“She was a quick learner and fit right in,” said Dirks. “I loved getting to know her and hope to keep in touch when she goes back home.”

Lysyuk has been learning from the experience and hopes to bring some of that back home with her.

“I think I should maybe do some more social work in my country because we don’t do that, and I feel that is what we probably need to do because we need to help people,” she explained. “I notice that people in America are nice, like really nice, and helpful. You can ask people that you don’t know about something, and they will be eager to help you, most of the time. I think I should expose it to my country because our people, they are more closed, and more caring about ourselves.”

The experience is touching lives, from Lysyuk, to all the people that she meets during her stay, to what she will bring home with her when the adventure is through.