Host families are wanted to make 10 kids’ dreams come true this school year.

Foreign exchange students from five countries are in need of housing beginning in the middle of August. The program is a tradition at Pacelli High School strengthened in the past few years, director Mary Holtorf said.

“Having host families really helps your kids develop a understanding of another culture,” she said. “We have a very accepting school. It’s an important program both for our students and our parents.”

Pacelli had about 15 or 16 exchange students in 2008-2009.

Holtorf said three exchange students are even returning this year.

Program coordinator Catalina Ferreira-Truong has visited Germany and China to connect with potential students. Pacelli works with a few programs that help select appropriate candidates.

Holtorf said the school seeks students who are independent workers and have a strong knowledge of the English language — “top notch kids,” she said.

Exchange students will arrive in the middle of August; some will stay one semester, and others will stay the whole school year. Holtorf said the semester students will sometimes ask to stay the second semester.

“If the host family says OK, they stay another semester, and if they are doing well in school,” she said.

Exchange students must follow the host families’ rules and perform well in school. Students are taken on trips one weekend a month.

There are not many requirements to become a host family, Holtorf said.

“You only have to have an open mind and be able to relate well to teenagers,” she explained.

A family with children in Austin Catholic Schools will receive a $1,000 tuition discount when they host a student for the entire school year, or $500 tuition credit if hosting a student for a semester.

The exchange students include two Chinese boys and one girl; two German girls and one boy; one Korean girl and one boy; one Colombian boy; and one Turkish boy.

“There’s always enough students,” Holtorf said. “It’s a matter of getting the host families.”

For more information about Pacelli’s foreign exchange student program, call coordinator Catalina Ferreira-Truong at 438-7627 or 433-2592, or e-mail her at cferreira-tr@austincatholic.org.