Medford students can apply to study in Italian sister city again

Nov. 29—Two years after the pandemic and then war in Ukraine put a decades-old program on ice, Rogue Valley students are invited to study abroad in the county seat's Italian sister city.

The Medford Alba Sister City Association issued a press release Monday announcing the reinstatement of the exchange program for the first time since 2019.

"We're very excited," said Stacey Stover, an association board member who teaches at South Medford High School. "We've done a lot of preparation for no trips, but this year we're confident we're going to go on through."

An informational meeting for interested students, their parents or guardians is scheduled for 7 p.m., Wednesday, Nov. 30, in the Prescott Room of Medford Police Headquarters, 219 S. Ivy St.

"We're hoping we get a good turnout because it's not at the top of everybody's mind anymore, with this lull," Stover said. "We have a lot of information to share."

The exchange program includes not only local students traveling to Alba, but Alba residents learning in America, too. The Italian nationals are expected to be in Medford July 18 to Aug. 1, while Rogue Valley students are scheduled to experience Alba Aug. 22 to Sept. 5.

One element that's different about the exchange program for 2023 is the number of students attending. Stover said it's roughly half compared with the 30 who attended before.

"A little bit of it is COVID-19 concerns. Italy is a highly vaccinated country, and Southern Oregon is not so vaccinated," Stover said. "People are a little bit more cautious than they were before."

The association will be accepting student applications from Dec. 1 to Jan. 13. Applicants should be prepared to get vaccinated for COVID-19, if they haven't been already.

"What would help them is to write a great essay (and) to make sure it is complete," Stover said. "Give their reference plenty of time to write a good letter."

Every student who completely fills out an application will be interviewed, she added.

"Prepare for the interview," Stover said. "We feel like just the interview itself is a great experience for high school students."

Overall, the exchange program is greatly beneficial to the students, she said, no matter whether they're American or Italian.

"The main thing they get is a whole other family, who has a teenage brother or sister there, roughly their same age," Stover said. "They stay with that host family for roughly two weeks, and pretty much every day the group of all the teenagers gather together and have a cultural experience."

The cultural exchange program began in 1985 and has welcomed more than 400 students since its inception, according to the association.

But the ties between Alba and Medford as "sister cities" began earlier than that. The relationship began in 1960, when then-Medford Mayor John Snider chose it as a sister city "based on factors he believed would lead to deep and lasting bonds between the two communities and build personal and family relationships."

Earlier this summer, the city of Medford celebrated with Alba the 60th anniversary of the first phone call between the cities' two mayors.

Alba, Italy, located on the European country's western side, above the "boot," encompasses over 20 square miles and is home to more than 31,000 people. It is known for its wine, white truffles and as the headquarters of Ferrero, maker of Nutella.

Reach reporter Kevin Opsahl at 541-776-4476 or kopsahl@rosebudmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @KevJourno.