Related Page | District 6630

This section is dedicated to helping each District 6630 Club
understand the Youth Exchange Programs and
the processes that are required for your Club.

Any general, Inbound or Hosting question may be directed to

Kevin Wermer, RYE General Chairperson and Inbound Chairperson at:

ryekevinwermer@gmail.com * 330-592-1622

Any Outbound Scholarship or Short Term question may be directed to

Patrick Kelley, Outbound Chairperson and STEP Chairperson at:

ryepatrickkelley@gmail.com * 330-233-7200

2026-2027 ROTARY YOUTH EXCHANGE SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE

The District’s Youth Exchange Committee has announced the availability to each District club of partial foreign non-monetary scholarships for American high school students to study for one year in a foreign country. As part of Rotary International’s Youth Exchange Program, foreign Rotary Clubs will provide your sponsored teenager their room, board and tuition with an estimated worth up to and sometimes in excess of $25,000. Rotary’s program has earned the distinction as one of the highest quality International programs that any middle-class student can easily afford.

The District has a large number of scholarships available for the 2026-2027 school year. (This number could be increased if more clubs participate in the program. Last year, Ohio Rotary Clubs could have given 300 scholarships to Ohio teenagers but actually only awarded less than 50) The only cost to your Rotary Club to award this $25,000+ scholarship through the District is the cost of the student’s attendance at your Club meetings and events and about $1,500 to host a foreign student in your local community and high school. There is always at least one teenager at your local high school that has dreamed of the adventure of studying in a foreign country but didn’t know you could make this opportunity happen for them through this Rotary scholarship program. They must be between 15 and 18½ on September 1, 2026; generally in the upper 1/3 of their class (but many exceptions are regularly made for otherwise outstanding teens. The exchange experience often opens the eyes of this latter group who become much better students on their return.) Parents will only need to cover travel expenses, organizational fees and additional spending money as their child needs it and help their child complete the Hosting Recommendation Sheets.

This is NOT a Rotary Foundation program, so children or relatives of Rotarians may participate in this Rotary program. With very little work, you have the ability to provide an unbelievable opportunity to your local teens with real financial savings and benefits for them. Most Rotarians don’t know or truly realize this. Boarding School Review at www.boardingschoolreview.com indicates that the average tuition cost of boarding schools covering the same things as Rotary’s program is $43,000 per year.

The District Candidate Interviews will be on, December 7, 2025, applications will need to be submitted by Clubs to the District by November 22, 2025 this year.

Although not controlling, four important qualities for an Exchange Student are:

 Adaptability,

 Internal Motivation,

 A Sense of Humor,

 Ability to Tolerate Set-backs and keep moving forward with a positive attitude