By Anna Schecter
Rock Center
Fifty high school foreign exchange students reported being sexually abused or harassed by a host parent during the 2010-2011 school year, according to data released by the State Department in response to an NBC News probe.
The Department says that this number is a tiny fraction of the 29,000 students who came to the United States as exchange students last year.
NBC News requested the data as part of a Rock Center investigation that aired Wednesday night.
Watch the full Rock Center investigation HERE.
Three students who said they were sexually abused by their host parents were featured in the report, which was the culmination of a six-month investigation into problems with the exchange program.
NBC News found that a lack of oversight can allow sexual predators to take advantage of the program. And when sexual abuse did happen, there is evidence that the students go back to their home countries with little or no support from the exchange organizations or the State Department.
Over 200,000 students from around the world have come to America to experience the culture and attend a U.S. high school over the past decade. They are placed with host families by non-profit organizations that are approved by the State Department to find homes for them.
There is an office of 60 people in charge of monitoring the more the 25,000 students that come each year, according to State Department spokesperson Toria Nuland.
Critics say that number is too small, and the Department’s push to bring in as many students as possible has made it impossible for it to ensure each student is placed in a safe and nurturing host family.
“Over the past decade the people at the State Department who were responsible for managing this program were praised and encouraged because the size of the program was growing. If they reduced the number of students, the program would be safer,” said Jessica Vaughan of the Center for Immigration Studies, a non-profit research organization.
The program dates back to the 1960’s, but the Department said it only started compiling data about allegations of sexual abuse and harassment in 2009 after the Inspector General issued a scathing report on the program.
Stanley Colvin who used to be in charge of youth exchange programs left after 2009.
Of the 66 total cases of sexual harassment or abuse involving a student, nine did not involve a member of the host family, but rather a classmate, friend, neighbor or stranger, and one allegation was against the exchange student.
In all allegations involving the host family, the [organization] must remove the student immediately to a safe home and notify local authorities--police and/or child protective services--and the Department of State, according to the Department’s regulations.
There is no language in the regulations about getting counseling for the teens that do get abused, or staying in contact with the teen after he or she goes home.
Parallel to any law enforcement investigation, the Department’s Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs (ECA) is supposed to gather information to determine whether the sponsor has violated any regulations.
Nuland said that ECA has terminated a number of exchange organizations over the past six months and exacted fines on organizations that failed to conduct background checks on host families, as required by law.
“When they have cut corners in other ways we have fined sponsoring organizations, we've cut back their access to the program, et cetera. But these are the kinds of measures that we're continuing to hone and reform,” Nuland said.
“The vast majority of these kids have a rich, enormously gratifying experience that lasts with them for a lifetime, said Nuland. “That doesn't change the fact that we have to have zero tolerance for any of these cases, even one child abused is one too many. And it is our job to fix this and we will.”
Editor's Note: Click here to watch Kate Snow's full report, Culture Shock, which aired on Rock Center with Brian Williams.
More from Rock Center:
- Resources on the Foreign Exchange Program
- Critics blame State Department for turning a blind eye to sex abuse
- Foreign exchange students sexually abused in program overseen by State Department
Leave a Comment:
A factor completely left out of this discussion is the responsibility of the school administration for consistently monitoring the wellbeing of the foreign students under its care. Part of this care begins with the selection of host families. Another aspect of the assignment of a contact person outside the host family who is trained to solicit and respond to the student's every concern in their experience during their educational visit to this country. Independent schools are in the most favorable position to remain in close contact with the foreign students because of their commitment to establish a personal relationship with every student and their family.
Well we hosted a french student and had a great time but we ended up taking in one of his friends who was hosted near by and was not sexually abused but was more or less cheap labor...this host put this kid to work day in and day out....it was horrible so we took him in........also on the tv aired show they said the abuse is one % which would be 250 kids out of 25000 but in the article on the internet it says only 50 kids out of 25000 or one in 2000 instead of one in a hundred so which is it?
The 1% of >25,000 kids was "....all types of alleged harrassment..." as per the above and other related articles, so any bullying, comments, possible threats, emotional, physical, sexual type inappropriate events, at school or in the neighborhood or in public or within the host family. The 50 was the allegations of sexual abuse within a host family setting, and there were 16 more cases, again, as mentioned within the above article. I appreciate Jen in Wyoming's comments. Note the 2004 date of the one student's time, the 2005 arrest of Meyer. This is not a current event. Currently, the State Dept has very extensive rules and regulations including multi-person evaluations and contacts of host families and students, by people unrelated to each other or to the host family by friendship or otherwise to provide multiple checks and balances. We just had a volunteer training event that very clearly and effectively prepared everyone on how to work to avoid abuse, and how to support the student through any alleged abuse. This included the simple reminder of "Call Child Protective Services!" Let them help sort out the truth, don't try to check it out further on your own. I'll leave for another time discussion of 'alleged' and it's ramifications in USA society, related to heightened awareness, skittishness/fear, and the road-of-many-exits which may lead to a final destination of conviction of a perpetrator.
While I agree that a single case of abuse or mis-treatment is too much, this story leaves out SO much. I am a 7-time host mom and volunteer with YFU, a high school exchange program. This story focused almost entirely on ONE host father and what happened before many changes were made. I think it's absolutely deplorable what happeded to these boys, but the focus should be on the here and now.
When every student arrives, they are given a pamplet with the US State Department's phone number on it and what to do/who to call in case anything inappropriate happens. At a gathering called the Post-Arrival Orientation, we (staff and volunteers with exchange programs) conduct a session called "Not With Me to address many situtations that are warnings of abuse. Our volunteer training teaches us to immediately remove a student from an unsafe environment immediately and to be a neutral party in any problems. Our number 1 priority is the safety and well being of the students. Yes, as the story suggests, we are under incredible pressure to find host families (how many people do you, whoever is reading this, have signed up to be a host family?), but not only do we want safe host families, we want families that will have a successful time with the student.
All host families are screened. We fill out an application that also requires pictures of the home, we have an in-home interview, we have a criminal background check, and we have to supply unbiased references. If the host family consists of anything other than 2 or more people related by blood or marriage, extra references have to be provided.
After the students arrive, a staff member or volunteer with the exchange program will meet with them in person and apart from the host family within a couple of weeks of the student's arrival. Each month we volunteers call or meet in person with the student, again without the host family present, to see how things are going. The students are given a chance to be heard.
It is also my understanding that the students also recieve information on sexual abuse and molestation before they leave their countries.
I'm also curious as to what the overall purpose of this story is. I'm hoping some people will see the story and decide to become a host family or volunteer with an exchange program. Over 29,000 students came last year. Almost all of them will be placed in a single hosting situation - only one exchange student in the home. That means that twenty-some thousand host families are needed. (By the way, single people can host regardless of whether or not they have kids of their own -- I can name a half-dozen single people that I personally know and who have hosted and been fabulous host parents.) In the end, the exchange programs have to rely on the goodness of people's hearts to host. (Host families are not paid.)
I am issuing a personal plea to everyone reading this to consider helping by hosting or being a volunteer with an exchange program. I have do both and consider it to the greatest thing I do. There are many resources on the web to find out more information. Hosting is not the "right" thing for every family, but many times people think they can't host because of reasons that really don't matter.
Remember that exchange programs are only as good as the people that host and work for them. In the end, it's really about the kids - what kind of experience do you want them to have and what impression of the USA do you want them to have?
You're asking what the overall purpose of the story is? I thought the story was clear; how common it is that many exchange agencies place innocent children in a residence where they are often neglected, raped, abused and forced to keep quiet about it or face being sent home in shame. When the student goes to report any concerns, it is common for the agency to blame the victim, support the perpetrator and demonize the whistleblower. The likelihood of this repeating itself is huge given many placement agencies continue to accept more exchange students than there are host families available.