By Andy Furman
NKyTribune reporter
Arnold Taylor is the self-proclaimed guru of the Study Abroad Program. And Jamar Yewitt, Jr. is the poster child.
As for Taylor, he grew up in Covington and graduated the University of Kentucky with a Law Degree in 1965. He has been a member of the Covington Rotary Club since 1978 – and is leading the charge for the Rotary International Youth Exchange.
The program is operated under the rules and guidelines of Rotary International and the United States Department of State governing such programs, he told the Northern Kentucky Tribune.
Jamar Yewitt, Jr, graduated Holmes High School – and thanks to the Youth Exchange he spent his senior year in Turkey.
“Youth Exchange is truly a scholarship program,” Taylor said. “The student receives free room and board, free school tuition, and a monthly stipend from the host Rotary Club.”
Taylor said the program is for high school students – and if you’ll be 15½ to 19 years of age – when you depart may apply for the program. Participating Covington schools include Latin School, Holy Cross and Holmes.
“There is no cost for the application,” Taylor said. “He applied, had good grades and was a worthy student.”
“Actually,” the 24-year-old Yewitt told the Covington Rotary Club the other day, “I applied my junior year and didn’t get accepted to the program. I applied again the following year and was accepted.”
Yewitt said he wanted to learn Spanish, and his choices for studying abroad were Mexico and Chili.
“They were options; but Turkey was also on the list.”
As luck would have it, Yewitt met some students in Chicago through the Hugh O’Brien Youth Leadership Conference.
“They were from Turkey,” he said.
Rotary, he explained, assigns you the destination.
“You get three picks; Turkey was one of them.”
So, Turkey it was – and he was reunited with his Chicago mates.
“I needed just English and Math to fulfill my senior year obligations for graduation,” he said, “and get my diploma from Holmes.”
Not so easy when you don’t speak Turkish.
“Many of the teachers were from Canada and the UK,” he said, “and they took me under their wing.”
“They love their vowels in Turkey,” he said. “They call it Vowel Harmony. Their language is quite structured. And yes, I still can speak some Turkish.”
He lived in Goktok, a village outside of Istanbul with his host family the entire duration.
“My trip over there was delayed a month for the political issues in the country,” he said.
It was in July of 2016 a faction within the Turkish Armed Forces organized as the Peace at Home council attempted a coup d’état against state institutions, including the government and president Recap Tayyip Erdogan.
They attempted to seize control of several places in Ankara, Istanbul, Marmaris and elsewhere – but failed to do so after forces and civilians loyal to the state defeated them.
“I was never in danger and actually felt part of the country during my stay,” he said.
Yet, Yewiit admits he missed a lot while in Turkey. “Things like prom and graduation,” he said, “but I still think it was worth it.”
Jamar Yewitt Jr., who graduated Berea College in 2021 always was interested in travel.
“Sure, I was hesitant to go; I had reservations,” he said, “My mom really supported me. She knew I wanted to travel.” And the travel continued while a student at Berea which included a short exchange program in Gahana and Cuba.
He’s putting traveling aside these days – he plans to enter a graduate program at Northern Kentucky University in Graduate Counseling.
Then Jamar Yewitt, Jr. will really take off.
Questions on Rotary Youth Exchange may be directed to Arnold Taylor: asaty1965@gmail.com.