The CBYX scholarship is pleased to announce Josi Bregulla, an AFS-placed, Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange (CBYX) student from Germany, hosted in Arizona, as the CBYX Participant of the Month.

An active member of her school community, Josi participates in a wide variety of student organizations including World Cultures Club, Student Senate, Dance Committee, Spirit Store Club, and Yearbook Club. In the fall, she ran cross country with her host sister and was awarded the Spartan Award for being an excellent teammate. Josi also began playing basketball during this school year. After working hard and practicing with her host dad, she won the award for most improved player on her team. Over the course of the year, Josi has taken courses including AP US History, Speech & Debate, Economics, and STEM Service Learning.

Josi’s passion for STEM extends beyond the classroom through her volunteer work at a local homeless shelter.  With three of her classmates, Josi designed and implemented a STEM curriculum for students aged 6-12. She was able to see firsthand the impact of her volunteer work when her students expressed interest in pursuing STEM careers after participating in the program. Josi’s project was awarded 3rd place in the Arizona State University Pitch Funding Competition. Josi and her teammates also received Youth Volunteer of the Year awards for 2017 from A New Leaf, a nonprofit organization that helps people in crisis. Josi plans to bring this project back to her hometown when she returns to Germany, as it has helped develop her leadership skills, and has shown her that she is capable of making “a big impact in the community.”

In addition to her STEM program, Josi has participated in a number of volunteer projects since her arrival.  This includes working at a food and clothing bank, joining in a local cancer walk, helping her teacher with inventory and organization, and volunteering with Feed my Starving Children, a non-profit organization that sends food-packages to third-world countries. These experiences have inspired her to develop similar projects in Germany. The year had a really big impact on her and provided the motivation to want to accomplish even more back in Germany. Josie plans on volunteering with refugees and families in crisis. According to Josie, “the CBYX scholarship gave me the opportunity to developed a life changing perspective in volunteer work.

Congratulations Josie!