This photograph features the arrival of 28 AFS Americans Abroad Summer Program Participants in Berlin-Lichterfelde, Germany in July 1954. Although the AFS post-war student exchange programs were founded in 1946, the program only exchanged students coming to the United States. In 1950, the Americans Abroad (AA) Summer Program was launched, thanks to the work of AFS Returnees who helped develop new programs in their home countries. The first nine students from the United States spent a few months living with families in France, which had the largest number of AFS Returnees at the time. By 1951, the AA Summer Program had expanded into seven countries in Europe. By 1957 AA Participants had the option to spend several months abroad during the fall and attend schools in their host countries.
