DP News

By REBECCA BRIA rbria@timesleader.com

Foreign exchange student Frida Freiesleben learned a lot about America from watching the “Simpsons” on television.

click image to enlarge

Frida Freiesleben, an exchange student from Denmark living in Dallas, says she knew a lot about America before she arrived from watching the "Simpsons.”

click image to enlarge

Frida Freisleben, center, an exchange student from Denmark, lives in Dallas with Rich and Barbara Zeiglin.

CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK/ FOR THE DALLAS POST

Select images available for purchase in the
Times Leader Photo Store

Life in the United States isn’t quite what Freiesleben saw on the cartoon series, but she does admit to enjoying American snacks.

The 16-year-old from Denmark is a foreign exchange student through ASSE International Student Exchange Programs. Freiesleben is staying with Rich and Barbara Zeglin of Dallas until the end of the school year. She is currently a sophomore at Dallas High School.

“The hardest part of it is getting to know each other, getting to know the routine and then it develops into a family relationship,” Rich Zeglin said.

The Zeglins have had eight foreign exchange students over the years. They began opening their home when their daughter, Renee, was in seventh-grade and hosted students until Renee, now 33, graduated from high school.

The Zeglins, who are now grandparents, signed up to host more students and Barbara became a representative for ASSE International.

“I wanted to do more than talk to a 3-year-old all day,” Barbara said of watching her granddaughter. “I had this enlightening thought, ‘Why don’t I become an area representative?’ And in the process of going through the paperwork and everything, Rich and I realized how much we miss having students.”

Freiesleben is active at Dallas High School and is a member of the International Club, the Diversity Club and the Drama Club. She is playing Juror No. 11 in the school’s production of “Twelve Angry Jurors” on Nov. 20 and Nov. 21.

The juror Freiesleben is playing is supposed to be from Europe and have an accent, so she feels she fits the part well.

The Zeglins have taken Freiesleben to various places from Washington, D.C. to Maine, including Chocolate World in Hershey. That was an adjustment for Freiesleben, who never before rode a school bus to school and is surprised at how dependent Americans are on cars.

“In Denmark, I just used my bicycle or took the train,” she said. “Here, someone has to come pick you up.”

There was one thing that stunned her on the first day of school.

“I was sitting there waiting for my recess,” she said as she laughed. “And to make it worse, I had lunch C which meant I had lunch at 1 p.m.”

She has many friends from different groups at school and recently attended her first school dance. In Denmark, she says, there aren’t any dances, pep rallies or school spirit. She also made second honors during the first quarter of the school year.

The Zeglins say one difference in having a foreign exchange student today is that they are able to establish a relationship with a student through e-mail months before he or she arrives.

“I also think it’s really nice that I could e-mail my family,” Freiesleben said, who e-mails her mother, Louise, 9-year-old brother, Magnus, and other family and friends a newsletter once a week.

Freiesleben hopes to see additional places, particularly landmarks in New York City and experience a white Christmas since it doesn’t snow much in Denmark.

“She’s adapted quicker than any student we’ve ever had before,” Rich Zeglin said. “She’s as Americanized as you can get.”