Tim and Shannon Rhodes continue to advocate for exchange program — and they love every minute of it
Fifteen teenagers in one house? Well … yes and no. Tim and Shannon Rhodes will never have to worry about the loneliness of an empty nest, but while they love them all like they are their own — two of them actually are — their large, rural house between Garvin and Slayton is more of a home away from home for this bilingual bunch.
“We have kids all across the world,” Shannon boasts. Tim and Shannon are deeply rooted in the local chapter of Education First (EF) — an international education company that specializes in language training, educational travels, academic degree programs and cultural exchanges — have hosted a total of 13 kids from all over the world in the last decade or so.
Shannon can remember all the way back to when she was 10 years old, when Jim and Sue Keul hosted a student. Her family also had one during her senior year at TAHS. It was during her time in high school when her interest in other cultures piqued.
“It’s neat to hear different accents and hear about how they live on the other side of the world,” she said.
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I knew that I’ve always wanted to host an exchange student. When our son turned 16, we thought we’d get one — I wish I would’ve had them when (my kids) were younger.
— SHANNON RHODES
Shannon attended South Dakota State University for two years and the University of South Dakota for another two after graduating from Tracy Area High School in 1993, earning her dental hygiene degree. She has worked at Shetek Dental Care in Slayton for the last 22 years; she’s been in the field for almost 30 years total.
The Rhodes’ first student in 2016 was from Norway. She was the first of many, as the couple enjoyed the experience so much, they’ve gone on to host a dozen more over the years. They currently are hosting two students — Antonina Godlewska from Poland and Eloise Steiner from Belgium.
Two more will be on their way for the next school year — Eloise’s sister, Estelle, and a French girl by the name of Clarisse Vigouroux. Eloise’s parents were here this past weekend, and brought Estelle to visit.
“I knew that I’ve always wanted to host an exchange student,” Shannon said. “We have two children … when our son turned 16, we thought we’ll get one then — I wish I would’ve had them when (my kids) were younger.”
Shannon, who traces her track to become a local coordinator who recruits students to schools to the region through 4H, took over from Marjie Anderson. EF reached out to her after Anderson moved, and it wasn’t a tough sell to get Shannon on board. As it turns out, the couple missed having an exchange student, especially after becoming empty-nesters.
“When our daughter went to college, we were like, ‘We have to eat with just each other and look at just each other?’” she laughed. “’Oh my gosh, where’s the kids?’ It was hard after our daughter went to college.”
They decided it was time for another guest during her daughter’s senior year of college, and the kids were all in.
“We thought we’d try just a half-year kiddo, and she was just the perfect kid,” Shannon said. “We just loved her so much.”
Shannon’s recruitment job has become a bit more difficult today than it was a decade ago. First, a host family has to be very open to the idea and willing to open their doors, and their lives.
“Sometimes people are scared to do it,” she said.
“It is a challenge,” Tim said. “Currently, our political issues in Minnesota has put us in the headlights in Europe. “They’re only seeing the negative that’s coming out of the Cities, and they associate that with the entire state.”
What potential families don’t see, Tim said, is life outside the metro area; the politics and strife of the metro area all but fade away the father one distances themselves.
“They’re only seeing just a minor bit of what Minnesota is all about,” Tim said. “But the kids do not have any issues about Minnesota.”
Although TAHS hasn’t seen a lot of international kids come in recently, there is a solid track record of EF students in Tracy. But the success a foreign student has in Tracy isn’t only on the host family, Shannon said. There are plenty of expectations on the other side as well, including schooling — after all, Tim said, the organization is called “Education First,” not “Entertainment First.”
“We expect maturity out of the kids; they’re part of a family and a school, so they need to represent their country,” Shannon said. “Academically, they need to be performing well, and they need to be able to communicate with the (host) family. But I’m there to support them if they need help with communication or are homesick.”
The latter has become less of an issue, Shannon said, thanks to technology. Decades ago, the kids could only send letters or have a phone conversation with their family back home, or maybe a family will record a conversation around the dinner table and send it to the States. It’s much different today.
Tim said he keeps in touch with the students on an almost daily basis through texts and Snapchat.
This school year alone, area schools that are hosting include Martin County West, Worthington, Edgerton Hendricks, Russell-Tyler-Ruthton, Westbrook-Walnut Grove and Murray County Central. Fulda will join that list for the next school year, “and I really, really want to add Tracy,” Shannon said. “My kids this year are so amazing.”
Shannon uses Facebook as part of her recruiting process, and also has information posted at high schools all around the area.
“It’s really helpful if (the schools) give me names of families,” she said. “A lot of it’s by referral though. One family will tell their friends, and then their friends get involved. Any way that can happen is good.”
While profiling students and their potential host family is a lot of serious work — it’s fun for Shannon — she thrives in her role as local coordinator, calling herself a matchmaker. All students fill out their own comprehensive profile, which is the starting point in the process. Shannon couples that information with interviews with local families.
“She tries to look into those interests to see if they’re the same as what we call our ‘hub’ of students that are looking for homes,” Tim said. “She tries to match those interests.”
Shannon said her duties don’t stop after the student arrives in the U.S. She will check in with each student at least once a month to see how the experience is going and address any problems that might have come up. Special events are planned throughout the year as well where all the students can get together, including one at Lake Sarah Baptist Church sometime in the first three weeks of their stay.
“We have a potluck, and they all bring food from their own country,” Shannon said. “That’s really fun. And we kind of remind them of the rules and expectations.”
Exchange students literally lose a year of high school by coming over, so when they return to their home country they will be a year behind their former classmates.
“If they were going to be seniors back home, they’re now a junior,” Tim said. “They give up a whole year to come here. It’s a big, lifechanging event for these kids — the financial side, leaving home, being gone for six months and then going back to all new classmates.”
The biggest transition for most kids coming over is acclimating to their new surroundings. If they happen to be from a big city, adjusting to rural life can be a bit of a struggle, at least at first.
“The biggest challenge I’ve seen from kids from the city is, they can’t just hop on the bus or the monorail and go somewhere,” Tim said.
But there many positives, too. “They love the sunsets,” Shannon said, “and the sun rises — they’re always taking pictures of that. Some of them have never seen the start because they live in a big city.”
Neither Shannon nor Tim receive any payment for the things they do to bring students over. To them, it’s not about getting paid.
“The benefit is giving these students a home,” said Tim.
Until now, all the kids the couple has hosted have been girls — “summer girls” as Tim calls them — that will change soon when they will host a boy in the near future.
“I always say, ‘Boys push buttons and boundaries, girls bring drama,’” he said. “I can deal with the drama!”
If you are interested in becoming a host family, Shannon welcomes any inquiry She can be reached at 507-227-7057 or at [email protected]
