ROTARY INTERNATIONAL’S YOUTH EXCHANGE PROGRAMS

ROTARY INTERNATIONAL Organizational Structure

DEPARTMENT OF STATE All exchange programs are governed by the rules and regulations of the Department of State as such these rules and regulations have the force of law. Failure to abide by the regulations may lead to forfeiture of the program.

STATE DEPARTMENT PURPOSES The State Department recognizes the value of making the youth of America citizens of the world To that end, the purpose of the program is to promote world citizenship and peace by development of future leadership

Department of State Regulations All host families must have a background check before seeing any application All host families must be periodically visited All counselors having direct contact with youth exchange must have a background check All persons directly involved in Youth Exchange must have a background check All persons must be sufficiently oriented to the program prior to the exchange All persons must have in place safeguards to prevent sex abuse and harrassment

Rotary’s Role In addition to the State Department’s purposes, Rotary International fulfills the role of a leader of youth development by providing 1.Immersion in a foreign language 2.Immersion in a new culture and history 3.A broadening of the student’s educational experiences

Secretariet District Governor Club Board Club President Youth Exchange Officers Youth Exchange Committee District YE Chairman

What is Ohio-Erie? Ohio Erie: A consortia of 7 states and a portion of Canada Canada, Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia, North Carolina, Kentucky, and Tennessee.

OHIO ERIE ORGANIZATION Officers Country Contacts Representatives District Chairs

District Representation District Chairperson Inbound Chairperson Outbound Chairperson STEP Chairperson

Officers of Ohio-Erie Chairperson Vice Chairperson Secretary Treasurer Country Contact Chairperson STEP Chairperson Chairperson of the District Chairs

Ohio Erie

Youth Exchange Programs

YEAH YEAH is a computer program that allows: 1. All applications to be entered by the applicant 2. All host families and counselors to be entered by the applicant 3. Stores the record of the student including all key information for reporting to the State Department (DOS)

Links to YEAH Host Family Link Volunteer Link

Family Application

Reference Page

Long Term Exchange Who is Eligible? Any High School student who ranks in the upper third of his or her class, possesses good character, has an outgoing and pleasant personality, is able to accept discipline, and is capable of adjusting to new and sometimes challenging conditions is eligible. A desire to learn about other countries and cultures and to appreciate and accept these differences is essential. Children of non-Rotarians as well as those of Rotarians are equally eligible to participate. The student must be at least 15 years old and cannot be older than 18 at the time school begins overseas, usually in late August or early September in the Northern Hemisphere.

The Exchange Student All Exchange Students are selected by Rotary after a careful scrutiny of qualifications and reasonable expectation of success. 1.A Complete Application entered in YEAH 2.Approval of the local club New Generations Committee 3.Approval of District Committee 4.Approval of Ohio-Erie Committee

Country Selection The Exchange Candidate lists the top 5-10 countries they would like to do their exchange

What make an Exchange Country contacts make contracts To accept a limited number of exchanges To send a number of exchanges The Out-bound Exchanges should equal the In- bound Exchanges A District must accept the same number of Inbound Exchanges as the number of Outbounds

NATIVE LANGUAGE Ohio-Erie places students in only those countries whose native language is other than English.

The Ohio-Erie Committee Selects the country the exchange is sent to An Exchange may accept or reject the appointment

Host Family Key to Rotary's Exchange Program While the hosting of an Inbound by the parents of an Outbound student is not an obligation, our Districts have discovered that many parents of Outbounds find enjoyment in taking part in the program when they open their hearts and home to an Inbound student for three months. An ideal exchange is one that places an Inbound in two to four different homes during a school year. It is not essential that hosts be Rotarians. In fact, Clubs are encouraged to seek non-Rotarian families to serve as hosts, and these families may or may not have children. Successful exchanges also take place in single parent households. Regardless of the host family format, motivation is a critical factor.

Outbound Host Families Ohio-Erie has an extensive network of trained country contacts. A country contact is a person living in this country who has close contact with a country in the visiting country. Once the country to be visited (where the exchange goes for 9-10 months, the country contact of the foreign country works with Rotary Clubs to find a suitable host families for the exchange student.

Checking out the Host Family Every member of the host family is given an extensive background check. We will know every house that person has lived in, every arrest record if there are any; and personal checks will be made beyond the references given. A person designated by the host Rotary Club will check out the home to ensure that it is safe, that privacy is respected, and to assess the home life setting. Periodic visits will be made while you are an exchange student to ensure continued good progress and to make sure that there are no undetected problems.

ASSURANCES Once the vetting process is completed, your family will receive a dossier of the host family. You and your parents will have the opportunity to determine the suitability of the hosts. By the same token, your potential host parents will review your application and determine if they are willing to host you. If everybody is in agreement to make the exchange, contacts are made between families and there is an exchange of letters, s, and Skype.

Pre Exchange Travel Arrangements are confirmed and the host family meets the exchange at the airport along with a welcoming committee from the local Rotary Club. Remember a club is the ultimate sponsor. All arrangements with your school in the exchange country will have been approved before you go. Otterbein: The ultimate orientation!

Orientation Outbounds receive a local orientation and Orientation at Otterbein. Otterbein is absolutely obligatory and must include one parent

Five Absolute Rules No drinking No drugs No change in physical appearance such as body jewelry or tattoos while on the exchange No driving No romantic entanglements Any violation of these rules will be justification for sending you home.

Brazil Chile Ecuador Mexico Peru Australia India Japan Philippines Austria Belgium Croatia Italy Thailand Taiwan Argentina Norway Check Republic Finland France Germany Norway Poland Russia Slavic Republic Spain Switzerland Turkey Mexico Finland South Africa South Korea Mexico Countries

Costs of a Long Term Exchange Passports and visa Medical examination Air flight arranged by Ohio Erie/IYWT (Open flight) Insurance is $1000 plus (Subject to Change annually) District processing fee $1500 A long term exchange usually costs from $5000-$9000 depending on variables of flight and country requirements.

Some Benefits No costs for room and board 10months of education in a foreign school Extensive travel and activities in a foreign country Because Host Families are volunteers and the year of education is no cost, a long term exchange actually receives an in-kind valued scholarship of between $15,000 and $25,000

Short Term Exchange Program (STEP) Family to Family Exchange Through STEP, young people from many different countries get the opportunity to spend a summer together, learning about different countries and cultures.

Our Program The Youth Exchange will be hosted by his/her matched family in another country for four weeks during the summer..

STEP Cont. The Youth Exchange’s family will reciprocate by hosting his/err matched international student for a similar period.

What Does it Cost? The parents and student pay the cost for the student's airline ticket and an administrative fee that includes health insurance for both the Outbound and Inbound student. The Health Insurance and administrative fee is approximately $ Travel costs are less because it is not an open ticket and parents can take advantage of reduced fares if they apply early enough.

STEP Qualifications

What makes a good Short Term Exchange

What make a good exchange student?

The Local Club Hosting incoming exchanges Recruiting host families Providing activities for the youth exchange Assist exchanges with service projects with lasting effects Providing financial assistance Providing counselors Having an active Youth exchange committee Encourage youth to participate

The Local Club Recruit through high schools and others to find suitable youth for exchange Provide encouragement to families Provide some scholarships Rethink the club’s responsibility to youth

Thank you for all that you do! It’s been great!