Seward High School sophomore Linus Beck traveled thousands of miles from Germany to experience American high school life — and found a great sense of community.
Beck, a foreign exchange student from Wuppertal, Germany, arrived in Seward in August and will return home shortly after the school year concludes. Wuppertal, located near Cologne, is home to approximately 355,000 people.
While in Seward, Beck is staying with host parents, Joseph and Christi Arnold, whose three children attend Seward Public Schools.
Beck said he had heard a lot about the United States and its high school life, which prompted him to want to complete an exchange year.
He did not expect to be placed in rural Nebraska, but he has had a good time and loves the sense of community in Seward. He said people have been very welcoming.
“People are more interested in you and really welcome you,” he said. “That’s not really the case in Germany. Everyone just does their own thing. Here, they come and ask questions. It’s fun.”
Beck, who is on the school’s soccer team and participated in cross country earlier in the year, said he has made lots of friends at school, especially through sports. He said schools in Germany do not have their own sports teams, and he has great fun playing alongside his friends at Seward High.
“It’s really nice that you kind of just know everyone at the school and you see them in the hallway and can say, ‘Oh, what are you going to do tomorrow?’” he said.
Beck said he has observed many differences between Germany and the United States. He usually takes buses and trains everywhere in Germany, so using a car to get everywhere in America is new to him. The food is different, too. Fast food is much more popular in the United States.
He said he also enjoyed the holiday season in America. Similarly, his host family has gotten to learn more about Germany’s foods and traditions from him.
“We don’t have Thanksgiving in Germany, so that was really fun,” Beck said. “And Christmas was awesome. I love holidays.”
Additionally, American schools have much more of a community feel and host various events and activities, Beck said.
“We don’t really have that in Germany,” he said. “School is more like you just go there to learn something new, and then you leave. Here, it’s more part of your life. You do things after school to hang out with friends and go to sports. That’s really something new for me.”
