Disability-Related Exchanges

Growing Up in Macedonia

Through her experience at the Overbrook School for the Blind in the United States, Adrijana Prokopenko learned how blind people live in parts of the world outside her native Macedonia. "Growing up in Macedonia" appeared in Future Reflections Vol 30, No 3.

Of Braille and Independence: Teaching English in Yemen

As a graduate student, Carla Valpeoz accepted a volunteer position teaching English to blind students in Yemen as part of her six-month practicum. Carla is legally blind and uses a cane for mobility.

Tracing the Steps of a Deaf Leader Through France

Rebecca Epple is an extensive traveler who grew up hard of hearing and is now profoundly Deaf. Having graduated from Gallaudet University with a master’s in Deaf Education, she now teaches at the Wisconsin School for the Deaf. Rebecca explains how she established an educational exchange for her students to France, the birthplace of Laurent Clerc.

Expanding the Meaning of Home

Annie Keenon traveled to Accra, Ghana with 14 fellow University of Oregon Journalism students to fulfill internships with various media outlets and non-profit organizations. Annie, who is hard of hearing, visited several disability rights organizations and uses her blog to share her added knowledge on the state of disability rights within Ghana.

My International Study Experience at CSUN

With encouragement from her Deaf role models, Manako Yabe from Japan enrolled in the Deaf Studies program at California State University, Northridge, where she embraced her own Deaf identity and researched deaf American, Jamaican and Japanese students' access to higher education.

Pursuing a New Overseas Adventure in England

In England, MIUSA exchange alumnus Mickey Kay landed an internship with Motivation, an international disability and development organization. Mick has a mobility disability and uses a wheelchair to explore the sites of Bristol.

Effecting Change Through Film

Through documentary film, Mitch St. Pierre aims to raise public awareness of conflicts around the world. The Canada native, who has osteogenesis imperfecta and uses a wheelchair, has traveled to over forty countries.

Promoting Mutual Understanding with an Eye on Disability: A Snapshot of a Fulbright Experience in Canada

Andrew Levinson shares his Canadian experiences in the Fulbright U.S. Student Grantee Newsletter Issue 30, April 2011. He is a power wheelchair user and as a Fulbright Student grantee enrolled in a master's degree program in Critical Disability Studies at York University in Toronto.

Featured Person: Sarah Funes

Meet Sarah, one of several young Americans and Syrians who collaborated on an effort to create the first disabled Muslim super hero.

Youth from the US and Syria Join Forces to Unveil a Superhero with a Disability

At the first international youth ability summit in Damascus in August 2010, attendees with disabilities collaborated to create a superhero who reflects what they have always wanted to see in a comic-book. Read the full article by Claire McCormack for Time.

Reflections on an International Career Teaching English

Roy Burkholder, a Teacher of English as a Foreign Language, has taken 19 trips to Asia in the course of his career. He has been living with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) for many years and shares his experiences and strategies for enjoying the journey abroad.

U.S. Embassy Supports Study Trip on Disability Issues for Members of a Mongolian DPO

A four day program in Washington DC provided an overview of the rights of people with disabilities and the roles of government and civil society organizations in advocating the rights of people with physical disabilities.

An Unexpected Lesson About Community

Elizabeth Shuler, an American student who is hard of hearing, devoted time exploring the spectrum of disability alongside peers with and without disabilities during a unique summer course in Ireland.

Painting with the Colors Given

Joe Chen is a person with a physical disability from China who volunteered at an American summer camp for children with disabilities.

International Summer Abroad Trip Explores Accessibility

Watch the video made by a group of UT Chattanooga students with mixed abilities who explored accessibility in Oceania.

Featured Person: Daniel Erchick

Daniel Erchick, an American graduate of Rice University who uses a prosthesis, earned a scholarship to support his volunteer work in Sierra Leone. Dan worked in a clinic in the West African nation, building and fitting prostheses for people with disabilities, and also established relationships in his community through his work with local schools and Disabled Persons Organizations (DPOs).

A Summer of Service in the United States

Alice Chen, who uses an orthotic device, flew to the United States from China to join other international students for a summer disability exchange program.

One Thing Turns into Another in the U.K.

Angela Winfield is a graduate of Barnard College of Columbia University Class of 2005 with a degree in political science and human rights and minor in religion. She attends Cornell University Law School.

More than Schoolwork: Youth Networking in Spain

Marvelena Quesada took part in a summer study abroad program at the University of Madrid in Spain. With assistance from her guide dog, Marvelena visited several cities on her excursion.

Traveling Between Worlds

Franz Knupfer is a Fulbright student alumni ambassador who works with and blogs about Nepal's vibrant deaf community. Franz is deaf and uses a hearing aid and cochlear implant to communicate, as well as sign language. He is currently studying creative writing, Nepali and Nepali Sign Language.