Number three on the j.v. soccer team may look like an ordinary MHS student, but Carlo Tschopp, senior, is actually a foreign exchange student from Lucerne, Switzerland.

Sixteen-year-old Tschopp said he wanted to complete a school year in America. Tschopp is fluent in German and knows some French and English.

Tschopp said that school in Switzerland is a lot harder than school in America. Plus, Tschopp said the lifestyle in America is different from in Switzerland.

Along with his classes, Tschopp also participates in soccer. When he showed up to tryouts on Friday, Aug. 12, Brendan Taylor, j.v. soccer coach, immediately saw that Tschopp was in good shape.

“He had good skills and looked comfortable on the ball,” Taylor said. “He seems like he fits in well with the current team because he is a nice guy, and he is unselfish with the ball.”

Taylor said the players seem to really enjoy him, and it is cool to play with people with different backgrounds.

“He has a quality skill set that will make everyone better,” Taylor said.

Besides soccer, Tschopp also participates in rowing in Switzerland.

Principal Dr. Greg Mathison said MHS has been closed to the foreign exchange program in the past because of the large student population, but this year they opened it up for one student.

“This year we are piloting the foreign exchange program,” Dr. Mathison. “This program is great way for students and teachers to understand different backgrounds, and it is great for [Tschopp] to bring back new ideas to his home country.”

While Tschopp is in America until the end of June, he is staying with sophomore Noah Freeman’s family. The foreign exchange program is through Youth for Understanding (YFU).

YFU is one of the world’s largest foreign exchange programs, according to their website.

Freeman said his family applied to YFU to host a student from another country. Before being eligible to host a foreign exchange student, Freeman said his home was checked by YFU representatives to make sure their home was fit for hosting.

After the Freeman family was approved, they chose the qualities they wanted in a foreign exchange student and then picked from a list of students. Freeman said they picked Tschopp even though neither Freeman nor his family members could speak Tschopp’s native tongue of German.

“It’s pretty much like having another sibling,” Freeman said.

Though they may come from different continents, Freeman said Tschopp and he live similar lifestyles and it wasn’t a big adjustment for Tschopp to live in America. Many things are the same between America and Switzerland, including food.

It has only been a little over a month, but Freeman said he looks forward to learning more from Tschopp.

“Understanding more of what it is like in America to Switzerland is a cool experience,” Freeman said.