By Sarah Greil
TOMAHAWK – For some high school students, the challenge of their senior year just isn’t enough.
Senior Fabian Schueler was looking for something more to spice up his last year of high school, so he decided to go into the foreign exchange student program.
Fabian is from Bad Harzburg, Germany. His father is a doctor and his mother is a high school teacher. He also has a twin brother who is an exchange student at Wausau East High School.
He decided to go into the foreign exchange program because he has always liked adventure and he has heard that people who go through the foreign exchange program “become more confident and have increased language skills and develop a connection to family and friends worldwide.”
“Especially at this young age, there’s a lot that you can benefit from,” Fabian said.
Fabian arrived in Wisconsin on Aug. 6 and lives with Nick and Molly Amelse and their two sons, Max (12) and Jack (15). He says he’s able to bond with Jack because they both play on the varsity football team. He has also gone camping with his host family to get to know them better.
Fabian played football back home in Germany, so he joined the Hatchet football team. He says football is a lot more popular in the United States than in Germany. Back in Germany, Fabian said many times there were only a dozen players at practice because the team was comprised of adults as well as students, and many adults had to work during practice times. There is no school team at his high school back home.
He does not have any definite plans for after high school. He and some friends have toyed with the thought of backpacking in the Sahara. He has some thoughts about possibly going to a university in the United States, but isn’t sure what he wants to study yet.
In the meantime, Fabian says football is very demanding, but he is already looking forward to playing baseball in the spring. He says he would also really like to see the Grand Canyon while he is here. He’s hoping to be able to go with a group of friends from the exchange program in the spring.