By Christina Burke
Staff Writer

It requires an abundant amount of courage for someone to pack up all of their things, say goodbye to their loved ones and live in another country for a year all for an educational purpose.

Foreign Exchange is a global program providing an incredible and unforgettable learning experience. Only a handful of the world’s students can say that they have participated in it.

Last year, Coppell High School junior Uxia Fernandez Bustillo made a decision that would turn her world completely upside down for the next 10 months. She was accepted into a program that would take her from the comfort of her hometown in Galicia, Spain and bring her to Coppell.

“I got a scholarship in Spain to participate in a program in the U.S. called CIEE. I signed up for the scholarship, and there were like 200 people applying, but only 75 could get it,” Fernandez Bustillo said. “The first time I heard about the program, I did not want to do it; I thought it was crazy. Then I started thinking about it.”

Applying for the foreign exchange scholarship was an agonizing process. After taking a series of tests challenging her English reading, writing and speaking skills, Fernandez Bustillo’s waiting paid off when she got selected to participate in the program.

“At first I did not want to believe what I had just done. Then when I started to pack, I was excited and I thought it would be fun. The last week, saying goodbye to my friends for a year, wondering what I can take, I was kind of nervous. The last day was weird, I could not believe what I was doing,” Fernandez Bustillo said. “I just think it is really cool, America. It is this huge country where everyone wants to go, and I get to practice English. It is only a year and you meet a lot of people.”

While Fernandez Bustillo was in the process of finding a host home for living in America, she sent out information about her interests, so that the possible candidates for her family could get to know her better.

She soon was matched up with the Hulme family, who resides in Coppell. The family’s mother, Kelly Hulme, participated in foreign exchange in high school and college, and was excited to help someone else experience this fantastic opportunity. Leading up to her move to America, Fernandez Bustillo wrote the family letters and talked with them on the phone about how excited she was.

On Aug. 9, Fernandez Bustillo took her first steps in America. She spent two days in New York meeting people who were doing the same thing as her from all over the world, and then flew to Texas to meet her host family.

“When she first got here, Uxia was pretty comfortable. I picked her up at the airport, and she got here about a week before school started,” Hulme said. “She had her own room and her own bathroom. I took her shopping for things like clothes and hand towels.”

Fernandez Bustillo spent the remainder of her summer vacation in Coppell unpacking, meeting people and preparing for school.

“The first day in America, I could not understand anything anybody was saying because I was not used to the accents,” Fernandez Bustillo said. “My first day at school was crazy because my old school was only 300 people, so when I got here, I was lost. I was nervous, I did not know what to do, and I did not know anybody.”

Though Fernandez Bustillo made many new acquaintances throughout her first few weeks at CHS, some friends were able to reach out to her in a more specific way than others, making her more comfortable in her new environment.

“When I first met Uxia, I clicked with her really fast because we both speak Spanish and she is just a really nice person. I introduced her to all my friends and helped her around school with any questions she had,” senior Maria Armenta said.

Adjusting to the school system also proved difficult for Fernandez Bustillo. This year she is enjoying exploring the educational options not given to her in Spain, such as U.S. History, digital photography and interior design, one of the many academic benefits of foreign exchange.

“Uxia is awesome as a student, very conscientious about her work, always communicating when she has questions or needs additional explanations. She comes in with a smile and is friendly with her classmates,” digital photography teacher Rachel Pellegrino said. “She has been a great pleasure to have in class. I wish she was coming back so she could join the yearbook staff next year.”

Over the course of the year, Fernandez Bustillo has been able to experience various opportunities that cannot be embraced in in her hometown inside and outside of school.

“I have been to hockey games, basketball games and football games; things I do not get to do in Spain and I want to do while I am here. I have traveled to Colorado, California, Oklahoma and some different places in Texas like Houston and Austin. I am trying to travel as much as possible,“ Fernandez Bustillo said. “My favorite American experience so far is the holiday of Thanksgiving. You go somewhere and you are with your family and you eat a lot; I have never done that before. It is a lot different celebrating holidays here than in Spain.”

As her time in America is coming to an end, Fernandez Bustillo is not only reminiscing on all the things she has done and people she has met in America, but also planning her return to the country in the near future.

“I am excited to see my family, but I do not want to say goodbye to everybody. I am sad and happy. I have no idea what I am going to do on my last day. I guess I will call all my friends,” Fernandez Bustillo said. “I am kind of excited to go home, but I want to come back to America for college. I want to go to UCLA because I have been there and I love it, but I do not know what I want to study, so I have to think about that next year.”

After knowing Fernandez Bustilo and watching her flourish in America, it will be hard for those who got to know her to let her go.

“I will be sad not to get to see her on campus again next year, but I hope that through Facebook and such we can keep in touch, share photos, and such,” Pellegrino said. “However, I know that Uxia will be successful wherever she goes and whatever she decides to do with her future.”

Fernandez Bustillo has grown close to the friends and family she has gotten to know this year. Although the end of her time in America is drawing to an end, they will never forget the time spent with her.

“I have seen Uxia grow as a person because she has matured a lot and her English has improved so much,” Armenta said. “I do not want her to go back to Spain because we have become such good friends that watching her leave is going to be really hard.”

Come June, Fernandez Bustillo will have returned home safely to Spain with her close friends and family by her side once again, reminiscing about the great adventures she has had this year. However, the connections she has made with people through this experience are strong enough to continue, especially with her host family.

“When Uxia leaves, we are going to be sad, and we are gong to miss her,” Hulme said. “We have really enjoyed having her, and we are going to visit Uxia in Spain, so we are going to see her again.”