My partner Chavi and I love to travel. We love learning about new places, discovering local customs, meeting people from around the world, tasting new and interesting dishes and everything else wonderful and exciting about jet setting around the world. Alas – we cannot travel the world all the time ( you know – career, pets, house, etc.) But we can still have all those great travel experiences while staying right in our home town. How do you ask? FIUTS!

FIUTS  is an amazing organization housed at the University of Washington campus whose programs foster cross cultural dialogue and  international awareness by bringing students from around the world together. One of their most valuable services is their Homestay Program. FIUTS connects incoming UW international students with host families in Seattle to help them transition easier into life in the US. We have an constantly growing number of international students coming to the UW to study. For most of them, it is their first time in the states and often, their first time away from home or their families. Being part of the Homestay Program offers them a friendly and safe environment where they can adjust to their new life in the states.

But being a Host Family is more then just providing a short term safe haven for an international student. It is about building friendships across cultural borders and creating  cultural ambassadors. Sign up now for a Homestay Program!