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Russian Leadership Exchange 2004

Kay Rockwell - Exchange Director

I t was a joy to explore American-style democracy and how we address Youth Issues with seven young delegates from Russia’s Baltic area, Volga region, Siberia, and Oblasts near the Sea of Japan. Tatyana, Rustam, and Andrey had governmental positions dealing with children, youth, and family affairs. Svetlana and Roman worked with children and youth associations. Irina was a teacher who coordinated a "Ragtime" Jazz Club. The average age of the group was 28! They had lots of energy and were very interested in learning about, and experiencing what America is really like.

State & Local Government

Receiving an Honorary Citizenship in Nebraska from Lt. Gov. Dave Heineman was a significant event and talking with Senator DiAnna Schimek about social concerns was a highlight on "Government Day" because such political officials in Russia do not meet with delegations like them. And, the Nebraska Supreme Court Room provided an interesting environment in which to learn about our judicial system, a very different system than the one in which they operate. At the end of "Government Day," Irina became our "resident musician" for the week as she introduced us to Jazz in Billy's Restaurant. It was a treat! Later in the week, Mayor Coleen Seng's emphasis on the importance of role modeling for young girls illustrated another difference between our countries; the delegates mentioned that in Russia women are not in roles such as these.

Youth Programs

While the Russians were introduced to some of our youth programs, the Americans also experienced parts of our society that many of us know little about. Friendly 4-H members at the Gage County Fair demonstrated roping and Rustam tried his hand at lassoing a garbage can his picture made the front page of the Beatrice Daily Sun! In America, we like this kind of attention and our FF Club is thrilled to have the press coverage. However, the Russian culture is different; our delegates needed reassurance that the press covers stories of interest, and that the story was positive and reflected well on the delegation.

The Malone Center visit was delightful as the Russian delegates played with kids from Lincoln's low income families. The kids loved our lunch of DaVinci's pizza which the Russians helped serve. And, when Irina sang "A Tisket, A Tasket, A Little Bitty Basket," it was a musical treat for all of us! Teen Court at Cedars Youth Services, an alternative sentencing youth program which can replace incarceration, was a concept the Russians could not fathom as working in Russia. And, when incarcerated youth at the Lancaster County Attention Center wanted to know what a Russian youth jail was like, the Russians informed the U.S. teenagers that they were living in luxury and that they WOULD NOT want to be in a Russian jail! The U.S. teenagers were amazed by the Russians’ description of jail life for youth.

Farewell

Dinner among the Elephant Hall fossils was a once in a life time experience for Tatyana. Here we said farewell to our visitors as Irina led us all in singing "It's a Small World After All." While the Russian delegation learned about our way of life, we also learned about theirs. Because of the Open World Leadership Program, we can celebrate the friendships which were built supporting the fact that A World of Friendship is a World of Peace.