Decorah HS student visits Malaysia as part of cross-cultural exchange program

Dailen Folkedahl (center) with one of her Malaysian host families

A Decorah High School sophomore has returned from two weeks in Malaysia, during which time she met with members of a chapter of Future Problem Solvers that is doing a joint project with the DHS Future Problem Solvers team.

Dailen Folkedahl tells decorahnews.com, "It was such an experience...I did practically everything imaginable."

For instance, Dailen was able to sample Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Mexican, Indian, sushi and barbeque food.  She also got a "fish massage," which, as she explains, is when you put your feet into a bucket that has little fish that eat away your dead skin cells on your feet.

But beyond the restaurant, shopping malls and tourist attractions, there was a serious reason for the visit.  The high school students from Decorah and Malaysia are working together to help eliminate stereotypes and promote cross-cultural learning.  A statement from the students says, "Our aim in this project is to enhance understanding of diverse cultures in Malaysia and Decorah with the hope of educating our peers in Malaysia, Decorah and beyond."

Last June eight Malaysians came to Decorah to visit and attend the International Problem Solving competition in La Crosse, Wisconsin.  It was then the high school students decided they would work together on this year's project.  Besides Dailen Folkedahl, Sam Iverson, Brad Suhr and Nick Vande Krol are the Decorah students working on the project.

When Dailen went to Malaysia, she not only got a chance to work on the FPS project, but to see how the Malaysian high school students lived.  "It was unique--I got to rotate around to all the team member's houses," she says.

Now that she is back in America, Dailen continues to work on the FPS project.  She is also working with other Decorah HS students to promote the understanding of other cultures.  The students plan to invite international students from Luther College and high school exchange students to come to meetings of Future Problem Solvers at the high school to discuss their countries.

Dailen, the daughter of Gina and Mike Folkedahl of Decorah, has written about her trip to Malaysia on the Facebook page: www.facebook.com/projectradical