CSIET Update For Rotary John O. Hishmeh Council on Standards for International Educational Travel February – 2009

Thank you for the opportunity to address your group, we are running our National Conference on International Youth Exchange Programs in Hartford, CT this same weekend. And, thank you to Dan Bronson for delivering this presentation in our absence.

CSIET Updates CSIET has partnered with the U.S. Department of State and the youth exchange community in an effort to encourage more American families and schools to host international exchange students

NEW PSA Campaign We are developing a print and radio campaign to promote international youth exchange and to encourage hosting. We plan to launch the campaign in early March to coincide with the beginning of the 2009 placement cycle.

NEW CSIET Website Also in early March, the newly redesigned CSIET website will be relaunched. This six-month project was coordinated with the CSIET Public Outreach Working Group which greatly enhanced the promotional value of the site.

New J-visa Regulations Proposed revisions to Sub-Part A of the J- visa regulations were published in Dec-2008 and subsequently pulled pending further clearances. Nothing has been republished on Sub-Part A to date. The initial proposal included the compliance audit requirement.

CSIET Compliance Audits Concerns regarding the CSIET outbound audit were heard from some in the Rotary community this go around. Contrary to some statements, no new CSIET Standards were required this cycle for outbound programs. The outbound program audit template required verifications from all programs with respect to CSIET standards and outbound programs.

CSIET Compliance Audits (cont) English translations of overseas documentation are not required for the audits. Criminal Background Checks are not required for Outbound programs, only for the inbound programs. CSIET will not require compliance audits once the State Department implements its audit requirement. CSIET is working with DOS to ensure a smooth audit transition. Programs will never be required to conduct two audits in future cycle.

CSIET Audit Review Audit reviews will be conducted in early March. Listing letters and certificates will be distributed by CSIET staff all month long. The CSIET list will be published on the CSIET website in late April pending any appeals.

Further Feedback We are happy to have Dan Bronson recently join the CSIET Board of Directors. Please provide Dan with your feedback so we can address your concerns when the CSIET Board meets in April. Best wishes for a successful gathering in Montreal!

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