Brazilian teacher has fond memories of Missouri town

ITAJAI, Brazil

very day Brazilian Marcia Suares Ferruci goes to work, she is reminded of her time 17 years ago as an exchange student in Jackson.

In 1987, Ferruci was a senior at Jackson High School as part of Rotary International's exchange student program. Today, Ferruci is married, has an 11-year-old son, and teaches English at a Catholic high school in Itajai, a coastal city of 150,000 about eight hours south of Sao Paulo.

"I think about Jackson all the time," Ferruci said. "My students know I studied in Jackson, and they always ask me questions about the high school and daily life."

Last July, Ferruci, along with her husband Luiz Alberto "Beto" Ferruci and their son, Joao Vitor, visited Jackson. It was the first time she had returned to the United States since attending Jackson High School.

It also was the first time Beto and Joao Vitor had ever been outside Brazil. The Ferruci family stayed with Odie and Faye Lingle, one of Ferruci's host families from 17 years ago.

Ferruci said Jackson has experienced incredible growth since she was an exchange student, noting that the highway to Cape Girardeau was two lanes when she was in high school.

"It was a totally different town," Ferruci said of her visit to Jackson. "Everything was bigger and different, especially the school."

Ferruci said her time at Jackson while she was an exchange student was like Charles Dickens's novel, "A Tale of Two Cities."

"It was the best of times and the worst of times," Ferruci said. "I thought I knew a lot about the world before coming to Jackson, but I didn't. I thought I knew a lot about my family and who I was, but I learned so much by living in a small town where I could ride a bicycle and walk around. I was really blessed and lucky."

Ferruci said she had wonderful host families and benefited greatly from her experiences in the community. "I heard stories of exchange students having problems or not getting along with their host families," Ferruci said, "but not me. All of my families were great."

In Brazil, Ferruci said students attend classes four hours per day while many teachers work a full day, teaching the same subjects to different grade levels.

She said students are very curious about American school customs and the fact students have so many different classes in one, 8-hour day.

Many of the students won't venture far from Itajai in their lives and will never see snow, a baseball game, or the vibrant autumn colors of deciduous trees. Of course, Ferruci said, students in Jackson don't often have the opportunity to go to the beach, cheer their favorite state soccer team or explore a tropical forest.

For the most part, Ferruci said students ask her about Americans driving at 16 years of age since drivers must be at least 18 in Brazil. In addition, American teens are more likely to have a car, and Brazilian families, even the wealthy middle class, might only have one vehicle for the entire family because of the high cost of cars, gasoline and insurance.

The students also like to discuss American high school events like homecoming dances, events that are different because most Brazilian schools don't sanction these events.

"They probably have a dance every weekend during the school year," Ferruci said of her students. "It's just our school doesn't sponsor or host most dances in the same way. They are very interested that schools in the U.S. do this."

But Brazilian students have their own customs unfamiliar to Americans. Brazilian students like to go out socially in groups. Early in the evening, it is typical for boys to go to a cafe together while the girls usually gather at someone's home.

Evening meals typically begin no sooner than 9 p.m. The boys and girls finally meet for dancing or a party around 11p.m. Many of these activities can last until the early morning hours.

Besides the late hours, Brazilian students might engage in a practice that, literally translated from the Portuguese, is called "staying."

Instead of having a boyfriend or girlfriend, Brazilian students may "stay" with someone exclusively for the dance or party. But when the party is over, the couple simply parts company. There is no expectation to trade phone calls or even see each other again.

The terms "boyfriend" and "girlfriend" are serious commitments that Brazilian students don't lightly make.

But life isn't always fun and lively for the children in Brazil. Not all children attend school in Brazil. Poorer children must work and generate income for their families instead of attending classes. Middle and upper class families typically send their children to either public school or a private school like the one where Ferruci teaches. Most of Ferruci's students are middle and upper class and will attend universities close to Itajai.

Although Ferruci and her husband aren't lifelong residents of Itajai, they know many of the people.

Most of the city's economy is based on its seaport, and Ferruci's husband of 15 years is the chief financial officer for the federal government organization that manages the workers at the seaport.

When walking in downtown Itajia, Ferruci must stop several times to greet former students, other teachers, or her husband's colleagues with a customary clasp of hands and kiss on the cheek.

Ferruci and her husband were raised in another coastal town about two hours north of Itajai, but they have lived here for 13 years. "Itajai is our home now," Ferruci said. "I really love it here."

These days, Ferruci only sees her students at the beach or mall as she is enjoying summer vacation with her son. Brazilian students -- and teachers -- have summer vacation from mid-December until mid-February.

Joao Vitor will start fifth grade when classes resume in less than a month. Ferruci is preparing to teach 30 different classes per week with students ranging in age from 11 to 17 when the school year begins Feb. 14.

Although she has been teaching English for almost 17 years, Ferruci said she is a little nervous about the upcoming year. "This is the first year that my son and his friends will be able to take my class," she said.

Ferruci said she reflects constantly on her experiences as an exchange student and fondly remembers her year at Jackson High School. In fact, she valued her experience so much she believes her son would benefit from the exchange student program and hopes he wants to participate in a few years. "At his age now, he is only interested in soccer and going to the beach," she said, "but I am hoping that changes."

Chuck Miller, a former Southeast Missourian staff writer, was a classmate of Ferruci.