My daughter got an invitation to participate in a People To People 'Student Ambassador' program. Like any parents, we were delighted, seeing this as an indication that someone sees in her what we do. But like any modern person, we did a little searching on the web, and what we found.... well, it doesn't exactly warm our hearts.
The good news is, they appear to do exactly what they say they do -- bring kids overseas, let them see and experience multiple different cultures, hang out with kids from other US places as well as meet ones overseas. The bad news is, they pitch it as a marvelous opportunity given only to a select few.... which appears to overstate the case. At the overview meeting, I told my wife that they were pitching so hard, I thought they'd start selling Amway products at any moment. The main promoter literally said you've only got a few days to get your reservation in, and it's first come, first served!
We know two kids who've done this. Both liked it a lot. Neither was bettered by it, though. One left an air-headed kid, and that's how she came back. One left a bright, focused kid, and that's how she came back. So its good, but its not a marvelous opportunity. At the overview, they had a dozen kids who'd done it, and their parents, there to stand up and say how great it was; the impression I got was that they liked it, too - but none of them was changed by it. In fact, one or two seemed reluctant to talk about the experience, which made me wonder why they were up there. Were they being offered an inducement?
And yet, we'll probably do it. Maybe.
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