MOSES LAKE - Sixty-four Japanese students have arrived in Moses Lake and are ready to make a connection with local residents.

The students are in Big Bend Community College's Japanese Agriculture Training Program (JATP) and will study English and American agriculture for nine weeks.

For 45 years, trainees in the program have been hosted by local residents for home stays to have lunch or dinner.

"We try to make sure every trainee gets to experience life in a local home, from an American perspective," said Susan Blackwell, JATP English instructor. "They are always thrilled to meet an American family and practice their English."

Host families provide transportation to and from Big Bend residence halls. The trainees are men and women ages 18 to 26. For most, it is their first exposure to American culture.

Some families take trainees sightseeing, bowling, or on various outdoor activities. Because the attendees are only in Moses Lake for nine weeks, planning for home visits begins soon after they arrive at Big Bend.

The trainees were welcomed at a ceremony March 26 at Big Bend. They were addressed by Consul General Kiyokazu Ota of Japan in Seattle.

When people in the U.S. aided Japan after last year's tsunami, the overwhelming response was due to personal relationships built over decades through programs like JATP, said Ota.

After studying at Big Bend, trainees move to host farms throughout the U.S. for 13 months. The trainees are assigned host farms according to their major, which could be cut flowers, vegetables, fruits, raw crops, swine, diary or beef.

Trainees spend three months at the University of California-Davis before returning to Japan.

For more information on hosting a trainee, contact Theresa Eatherton at 509-793-2297.