People to People Student thing?

Last year I got a letter in the mail from the People to People Student Ambador Programs thing saying I could travel to Australia, Italy and somewhere else for the Summer of 2010, but my mom threw it away. I'm not really sure what it is, but I know that my friend's brother was in the program and he went to Italy, Rome and somewhere else. But today I got another one in the mail saying I could travel and study in Italy, France, Switzerland, and Austria and those places seem pretty cool. So how was I chosen as a participant because none of my friends got one? Was it because of my grades, or athletics, or something. So what is it and is it free?