ROCKPORT — Students at Camden Hills Regional High School are going places — amazing, exotic, far-away places — with the help of a growing international program that has opened up a world of opportunity in the Midcoast.

"The opportunity to participate in an exchange program offers tremendous benefits to our kids," said Principal Dr. Nick Ithomitis. "They get to see some pretty incredible places that they might not otherwise have the opportunity to see, but these trips are definitely about more than just travel. The programs we have been building give our students a chance to truly experience another culture. They connect with other families, they build friendships, and they actively participate in the community and the culture of the places they visit. It's life-changing for these kids."

Ithomitis has worked to expand the school's foreign exchange programs since he took the reins at CHRHS in 2005, logging hundreds of hours of his own time to build relationships with more than a dozen collaborating schools around the globe.

From Japan to the Genoa, a network of academic exchange and cultural goodwill connects Camden to a growing world community that has welcomed local students and teachers with open arms.

"[The CHRHS] community was a great example of cooperation and friendship, and I feel so grateful for that," said Elena Risso, a teacher from Genoa, Italy, who came to Camden Hills with her students in October. "We all found wonderful friends in Maine and this experience will be forever in our hearts."

Each international experience is unique. Many of the short-duration exchange programs use the host family model, where the families of traveling CHRHS student host a student from the partnering foreign school for a week or two.

Families abroad reciprocate, and students are able to build and maintain long-distance friendships through social media. Others are intensely academic, focusing on specialized coursework connected to the destination.

"It was amazing," said one CHRHS student of the 10-day marine science course in Cape Eleuthera, Bahamas. "Going to the Bahamas was incredible, but I've never worked so hard on schoolwork in my life."

More traditional, long-term exchanges, such as those managed through Rotary International, go on as well, sending CHRHS students abroad for a semester or a full academic year.

But the volley of Camden's best and brightest out to fascinating destinations across the globe is only half of the story. Nearly every CHRHS international experience includes both departures and arrivals. Over the last 10 years, the school has welcomed hundreds of foreign students to experience life in Maine, both in the classroom and at home.

"Hosting the Italian students allowed us to grow," said CHRHS senior Jeremiah Kemberling, whose family hosted one of the Italian students. "Spending time and building friendships with the Italians allowed us to become immersed in another culture. We cooked together, laughed together, and taught them about our culture and the local wilderness."

The exchange program is designed to provide visiting students with a glimpse of what it's like to be a student in the states by including them in regular classes, clubs and athletic events.

After school, participants enjoy activities, share meals and build personal connections with host families from across the district. The integrative approach seems to be working, providing foreign students with real memories of American life and expanding the program's sphere of influence to include the larger CHRHS community.

"The school community benefits a great deal,”said CHRHS social studies teacher Mark Wallace. “Nearly every day exchange students are here while they attend classes. Their presence in the classrooms is like a billboard for travel to every student. Our students are curious about life abroad as they struggle to imagine a lifestyle so vastly different from their own. But, at the same time, they are excited to find common ground with foreign students when they can."

Camden teachers benefit from the experience, as well, both personally and professionally.

Traveling to foreign locales as chaperones and advisors, educators get the chance to experience distant cultures and gain a deeper understanding of the people, places and events that they reference in their teaching.

The first-hand knowledge they gain strengthens their professional practice, allowing them to teach from experience about rainforest ecology or the Great Wall of China rather than simply referencing a textbook.

"As a teacher that travels with students, I consider myself very fortunate," said Wallace. "I never crossed an ocean until I was 35 and now I am about to make my third trip in five years with students this spring. Travel takes learning to a whole new level as a teacher. My travel takes my students and I to places that fall within my curriculum. My passion for my subject matter immediately translates in the real world of travel in a way you can never repeat in a classroom. Walking the Great Wall is certainly not the same as talking about the Great Wall!"

Both Ithomitis and Wallace point out that the international exchange experiences at Camden Hills are not restricted to wealthy families.

Ithomitis has made equal access a priority since many of the programs began, making sure that students whose families may not have the funds for travel have equal opportunity to participate. Expenses are kept under control through scholarships a mandatory fundraising requirement that takes the financial burden off individual families, and off the school. Over the past five years, the school has provided over $100,000 in exchange program scholarships.

"We want every student to have the option of experiencing travel abroad," said Ithomitis. "Our community has been incredibly generous in supporting ongoing fundraising efforts, whether it's individuals supporting a car wash or partnerships with local businesses. The funding for these programs is entirely independent of the school budget."

But beyond the fundraising, the classes, and the travel, CHRHS's exchange programs are really about getting to know people from other cultures on a deeper, more human level.

"Thanks to this exchange, the students realized that there are no borders in terms of human feelings. Our kids spent 14 days together and they developed a deep connection based on love, respect and acceptance," said Risso, whose school will be hosting CHRHS students in April. "They realized that, no matter where they were born, they were all very similar, and they all wanted to change the world with their brilliant ideas. No matter what religion they belonged to, or what kind of food they were eating, at the end of the day they were aware that their needs, fears and hopes as human beings were the same. I think that love and acceptance between people that live in different places should be the goal of every exchange.”