Dawid Baluch was born in Silesia, close to coal mines and to mountains. His mother is a teacher and his father is a coal miner. Dawid enjoys doing a lot of sports such as running, cycling, cross fit, and volleyball which he achieved 3rd place in a Volleyball Championship. He is willing to take part in different forms of volunteering in school or a big event like WOSP or UNICEF. Last year he was in the United States for the FLEX Program. There he did 207 hours of community service, gave presentations about Poland to a US audience, and took part in a school event where they made 50,142 meals for people in poverty. In Poland he wants to share the experience he had gained in the United States. Dawid also volunteered for a UNICEF program where he worked to help people from Sierra Leone.
Barbara Brzezinska lives in Poniatowa. She spent her fantastic FLEX exchange year in Whitehall, Wisconsin. She loves to sing and make music. She is a member of an old music ensemble “Scholares Minores Pro musica Antiqua” and of the choir “Szczygielki” in her home town. The FLEX program gave her so many opportunities to develop herself in the United States. Barbara got to volunteer for school events like the Junior High Solo and Ensemble Festival, the “Trick or can” program where students collect food for people in need. She also helped organize “Whitehall’s Got Talent Charity Concert” at her school which was very successful. During the FLEX Program she was able to continue doing music, learned so much about life, and she definitely looks at the world from a different perspective now.
Akerke Demeubayeva is from Kazakhstan and during the 2015-2016 year she was a FLEX student. During the FLEX program Akerke went to Eagle River, Alaska where she particpated in various activites at her high school. Currently she is studying at Lazarski University in Warsaw with a (double degree from Coventry University). Akerke is working towards her BA in Business Economics. Last year she got an opportunity to visit the partner university as a part of a project related to current economic issues. She has also recently started an internship. In her free time she enjoys traveling and participating in both academic and entertainment activities at the university. She is ambitious, positive, and a dedicated person.
Daga Duszyńska is a 2017-2018 FLEX Alumni who was hosted in Dunkirk, Indiana. Her exchange year created a great opportunity for her to improve her leadership skills. Moreover, she was able to continue her volunteer work with elderly people and children. She learned many things which she hopes that she can introduce to people in Poland. Currently she is attending high school to earn her international diploma, since she is hoping to go back to the USA to study abroad. In her free time Daga likes to travel, ride horses, bake, spend time with her friends, and read.
Natalia Jarczak is 19 years old and she was a FLEX student in California from 2016-2017. While in California, Natalia completed the PAL Program (WorldLink) where she worked as a volunteer for over 100 hours at a pet shelter and nursing home. She recently graduated from high school and now plans on going to university. Natalia is more of an artistic person and she is very passionate about taking pictures, art, and music. In her free time she also enjoys watching movies, going to concerts, travelling, and cooking. Meeting interesting people and self-development are the main reasons she applied to the Alumni Mentoring Program so she hopes that this will be the next exciting adventure for her.
Iga Karasińska is a FLEX alumni who is attending 1st High School in Rzeszów. She is turning 18 in September. Iga is interested in politics, Kpop/trap music, travelling, and vegetarian food. In the future she would love to become a lawmaker. Her biggest dreams are: learn how to play the cello, open her own restaurant, write and publish a book, and meet Benedict Cumberbatch. In her free time she enjoys watching Friends and Sherklock, reading interesting articles from The Atlantic or Aeon, books on sociology, and philology.
Diana Kępa is second year linguistic student at II LO im. Piotra Firleja in Lubartów. She spent her exchange year in Homedale, Idaho, where she did more than 100 hours of volunteering as a tutor, took part in drama club and sport teams and traveled the west USA. Diana is a member of Alumni Association of U.S. State Department Exchange Programs. Her interests include art, learning languages, exploring the world by travelling and getting to know different cultures. Diana enjoys developing her artistic potential with the Scena 44 (drama club) and her love of travelling with the ‘AZYMUT’ (tourist club). She likes to share her experience with others and promote cultural understanding along with working with the Young Learners Resource Center in Lubartów. Diana is a participant of EducationUSA Advisory Program, which is preparing her for applying to U.S. universities.
Karolina Kozielska will be attending her dream high school in September, Akademia High School. She spent a year in America in a beautiful small town near Los Angeles called Acton. She is very passionate about art, especially film and its power to change the world into a better place. In the future she is planning to study at one of the US universities and afterwards she would like to work in the film industry. She believes that her mission is to help people understand differences between each other and that it is something we should embrace while living together. In her free time she enjoys doing karate, working as a model, and taking photos.
Agata Łaziuk is from Minsk Mazowiecki and she was a FLEX exchange student in Weirton, Wester Virgina. Before she came to the US, she had been working as a volunteer at the Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw and had participated in the Daffodil project, which is to commemorate the Jewish Ghetto Uprising. In her American high school she organized the ”Holocaust Remembrance Day”. She gave a speech at the Jewish synagogue about her activities in Poland connected to Jewish culture and history. Agata has graduated high school and now wants to study American studies as a major at University. In her spare time she likes to run, work out, read books, and watch movies.
Monika Motyka is a FLEX Alumna of 2017. Thanks to the FLEX Program she had an opportunity to spend a year in the United States. She learned a lot about American history and culture during her exchange year. She also made great friends and gained many skills that she would never have gained without FLEX. After she came home from the USA she started to study Finance and Accounting at Cracow University of Economics. Monika also used to be a volunteer in a nursery back in her hometown in Poland. She helped kids with their homework and played with them. While she was in the USA she did different kinds of volunteering. She worked at elementary school where she would help Guatemalan kids to learn English. In her free time, Monika enjoys sight seeing and taking photos.
Anastasia Muhina is from Ukraine but is currently finishing her bachelors degree in Film Direction and Film Production in Warsaw. As she grew up without an internet connection she turned to books and movies to spend her free time. She would save up her money to buy tickets at the local cinema in her town and read books from her family’s library. During her experience as a FLEX student in Maryland Anastasia was inspired by the beautiful forests there, ‘I decided to become a filmmaker and to create something beautiful, something true and in some way something immortal’. As an aspiring filmmaker Anastasia would love to make a short film about the difficulties that women find in trying to enter a film career.
Iga Musiał is a FLEX alumna from Wrocław. She has a hearing disability, and in her home country she voulnteers in a special organization for people with hearing disabilities. She studied in Waianae, Hawaii for her FLEX exchange. There she volunteered in St.Rita where she helped feed the homeless. Iga is an ambitious, hard-working young girl who likes to know new people and share with them about her experience, and also get to know what they want to share with her. She really likes reading books, listening to music, riding her bike, swimming, and spending time with her friends.
Zuzanna Nowak is 18 years old and she just graduated from Cumberland High School in Virgina, United States. When Zuzanna was in Virgina she volunteered at a local Mexican reastuarant and the Volunteering Rescue Squad. Soon, she is planning to enroll in college and major in International Relations. The social issue that Zuzanna is the most interested in is the refugee problem. Currently, she works at a logistics company. Her hobbies include horseriding, singing, and guitar playing.
Andriy Novytsky is from Ukraine and is currently a second year student at the University of Warsaw where he is majoring in Sinology. Last summer Andriy attended a university in Taiwan for a summer semester abroad. In 2015-2016 he was a FLEX program student in Union, Washington State. While in the US he spent 70 hours voulunteering at Black Hawk Children’s Theatre in Waterloo, Iowa where he built stage props. In Poland he has taken part in the CallPage project wherein he answers calls about FLEX Poland. He is very interested in Chinese culture, and everything related to the Middle Kingdom is his passion. Andriy enjoys politics, traveling, and sports like swimming or karate.
Natalia Pinchor is 19 years old and she is a FLEX alumni of 2018. When Natalia returned from her FLEX experience in America, she felt like a new person. She felt more open-minded, creative, and responsible. One of the most important skills she learned was the improvement of her English language skills. They improved so much that she is currently an English tutor. Natalia is also passionate about volunteer work. She helped volunteer at her host family’s church in Wisconsin, and in Poland she volunteers at charity events. At these charity events Natalia helps organize concerts and even preforms in some of them. During her free time she likes to spend time outside by riding a bike, walking, sight seeing, and swimming.
Oriana Pluta lives in Zielona Góra in Poland. Her FLEX exchange was in Crandon, Wisconsin. There she volunteered in CCD classes in a Catholic church where she worked with children. She also volunteered in Community Garden where she took care of plants. Oriana is an active person that loves adventures. She loves sailing, it is her greatest passion. She also loves swimming, kayaking, and basically every sport or activity that is connected to water. In the future she would like to travel the world, meet new cultures, and help people from different countries.
Jakub Pośpiech is a 17 year old FLEX alum from Ciechanów (a small town, 100 km north from Warsaw). Starting in August he will be attending a high school in Warsaw. He spent his FLEX exchange year in New Braunfels, Texas. He used to train in boxing and was on the wrestling team in the United States. He likes to learn new things and teach people how to understand differences between each other, and not to discriminate. In his free time he likes to be with his friends and travel.
Zosia Prech is a 16 year old FLEX alumna who studied in Bangor, Maine for the past ten months. There she joined the SEED Club and tried to protect the Earth by recycling, planting, and cleaning. She loves dancing, and playing volleyball. Zosia also loves talking, “Once I start, I can’t really stop”.
Anna Rygielska is a FLEX alumni from Wrocław. She went to Savannah Georgia from 2017-2018 for her FLEX exchange. In the USA she volunteered at different events such as Responsible Dog Ownership Day, Savannah Jazz Festival, Toys for Tots, Relays for Life and others. Since then Anna has graduated high school and she is currently a International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme student. Her passions include photography, cinema, books, and music. She also likes to travel and try new things.
Rozalia Rzepka was one of the 2017/2018 participants of the FLEX Program. She spent her exchange year in Tipton, IN. There she volunteered in a local hospital where she learned how to adapt in multiple different situations. Rozalia also volunteered at the Boys and Girls Club of America and in a nursery within a church in her community. These experiences helped her gain a better understanding of patience and leadership with children. She feels that being a part of the FLEX Program has helped her grow as a person not only in who she is personally but who she wants to be to a community.
Fryderyk Sitnik is a frequent traveller who speaks three languages, and is currently learning two more. His FLEX Program exchange took place in Araphoe, Nebraska. He is fascinated with public speaking and robotics. Both of these interests he developed in the United States during his FLEX exchange. Fryderyk is also very interested in innovative start-ups. In Poland, Fryderyk is planning to start volunteering for Pulaski Foundation (a political think-tank). He is an active person who is a runner and martial arts fighter. He is also an open minded public speaker, and international networker. He has a solid background in math, physics, science, and technologies.
Emilia Solga is an 18 year old FLEX Alumni. She studied in Redding, California during her FLEX exchange. In the US she got to volunteer for PRIDE events, schools and churches. She got to know the tolerance and pride- culture in USA and got to talk to many elementary school students about their culture and her own. She also got to share her knowledge about Poland and Polish cuisine with all the people in Redding Pilgrim Church. Emilia likes good tea, writing stuff down in her journals, sailing, traveling, and learning new languages. Her biggest dream is to one day start her own language school.
Katarzyna Tes is 18 years old and recently completed the FLEX Program for the 2017/2018 school year. She feels very greatful to the FLEX Program and the US Department of State for the opportunity to take part in the program. She can bodly say that it was the best year of her life and that she has learned a lot of family values, respecting people, time, and money. In the future she would like to pursue a medical career and become a doctor because she believes that helping others and sharing your knowledge is the most honorable action you can take. She is not afraid of taking new challenges and always does her best. In her free time she likes to relax and listen to pop music.
Zuzanna Wójcicka is an International Baccalaureate student at Nazaretanki High School Warsaw. She is her class’s president and actively takes part in school activities. Her academic interests include history, learning foreign languages, studying politics, and reading on current global issues. During her FLEX program in the US, she was involved in many community events and volunteering. Zuzanna took part in Girls State North Dakota workshop and Civic Education Week in Washington, DC where she learned about the American federal government and democracy. In Poland, she is an active volunteer for Amnesty International, American Councils, and likes to teach kids English. Her main goal is to promote cultural understanding and work in diplomacy in the future.
Zuzanna Żbikowska is an 18 year old FLEX Alumni from Poland. In 2017-2018 she studied in Pisek, North Dakota. When she was in the USA she helped with the pancake feed at the local community center to raise money for her school’s SADD organization. She is passionate about sports. Zuzanna loves playing tennis, table tennis, soccer, volleyball, and swimming. In her free time she also goes to the gym. She loves to travel, watch good movies, hang out with her friends and read books too. Zuzanna is from a small village and she sees that there’s quite a few homeless people. She would like to organize a project that would collect food and clothing for them. This project would make sure that every person has a warm coat and shoes for winter.
