|
THE
DUTIES OF AN INBOUND COUNSELOR - Background Check Required
The
inbound exchange student counselors job is essential for the success of the
Youth Exchange Program. The counselor should be a Rotarian, or the spouse of a
Rotarian, with a well balanced outlook,
and an ability to work with, and relate to, young people.
At
the same time the counselor must be able to co-ordinate and inspire club member
and host family involvement with the student. It's a job that requires time and
effort, but can be really rewarding. The counselors spouse can also play a very
supportive role in the Program.
The
counselor should be the same sex as the student and may not be a host parent for the student.
He or she can be
available to host the student for a few
days during the year, for special activities, or when emergencies or other
situations in host families require alternate lodging for short periods.
The
counselor is responsible to the Chair of the club's Youth Exchange Committee for
the functions and activities set out in these guidelines.
| BEFORE
THE STUDENTS ARRIVES |
| 1. |
As
soon as you are assigned as counselor for an inbound student, check
with the Committee Chair to
determine whether all documentation has been completed (e.g.
sponsoring club, host club, and
school acceptance, etc.) |
| 2. |
If
necessary, assist the club's Committee in selecting host families for the
student. In consultation with the families, prepare a schedule of the specific periods
during which the student will be hosted
by each family. The club's Youth Exchange Chair will have written a
letter to each host family and
provided them with a complete copy of the inbound student's application,
the District's Youth Exchange
Program Guidelines, and any other material that has been prepared for the information of local host families. You might want to confirm that
the host family has received this material. |
| 3. |
Once
the exchange has been finally confirmed and the host family schedule has
been prepared, write the
student a warm letter of welcome and encourage the first host family to do
the same. The club's Youth
Exchange Committee Chair will be writing to the student, but it is essential
that you do so as well. With your
letter send the student a copy of the hosting schedule with the
names, mailing addresses, and telephone numbers of each of the host
families. Also provide some basic
information on the first host family, just in case they don't manage to
get a letter off to the student. |
| 4. |
Ideally
there should be an exchange of 2 or 3 letters between the inbound student
and the counselor and/or first host family before the student arrives.
A letter from the counselors' spouse is
a really nice touch! Unfortunately, in rare cases arrangements are
not confirmed by the sponsoring
club or the inbound student in time for any correspondence to take place. |
| 5. |
The
student will likely need clothing suitable for our climate
- particularly if he or she is from the
southern hemisphere and arrives in January or February!
Since the student will not know local values, it will be important for the host mother or the
counselor to help the student buy any
required clothes. |
| 6. |
Students
from warmer climates should be encouraged not to attempt to buy
winter clothing until they arrive.
Sometimes items such as down jackets, winter boots, etc. can be
borrowed from a host family or members of the club, which could
avoid spending the student's limited
funds on expensive items which will only be required for a few months. |
| 7. |
Arrange
for the student to reconfirm his or her travel plans by phone immediately
prior to departure. |
Return To Top
|
1. |
The
counselor should ensure that a suitable welcoming party is at the airport
well before the flight is due. This can include the counselor and
spouse, the first host family (and other host families), other hosted
students, and members of the club's Youth Exchange Committee.
If
the student is not being picked up locally (for example he or she is
arriving in Spokane, arriving by bus, etc.) appropriate arrangements
should be made to make the student feel welcome on his or her arrival.
|
| 2. |
Ensure
that the student notifies his or her parents that he or she has arrived
safely by phone, fax, or other
means within a couple of hours of arrival. |
| 3. |
If
practical, the student may spend a few days with the counselor and his
family before settling in
with the first host family. This can give the counselor and the student an
opportunity to become
acquainted and establish a rapport, and may help the counselor identify
issues or potential problems that
should be brought to the attention of host families. |
| 4. |
At
the earliest opportunity (within a day or two of arrival), the counselor
should have a good discussion with the student, and try to develop a parent -
son/daughter relationship. Go
over with the student (in as
much detail as language proficiency allows) all of the guidelines for
inbound students, information
relating to the school, information concerning the community and area,
special activities planned for the student during the year (e.g.
tours, conferences), etc.
The
counselor must emphasize that the "Rules and Guidelines for
Inbound Students" must be complied
with, and that failure to do so may result in immediate termination of the
exchange and the student being returned home.
You
may have to point out that, while local students may be dealt with fairly lightly for offences such
as drinking, using drugs, or even shoplifting,
these are very serious offences for an exchange student, and will have
very serious consequences. |
Return to Top
|
If
the student arrives during the school period, the counselor or a first
host parent must accompany
the student to school to register and select appropriate courses of study.
Consult
the school counselor about
available courses, and try to include one or two English language and Canadian/U.S. history or geography courses - and possibly art
or music which don't require as much
language skill.
It
is important to choose courses carefully, as it is difficult to change
them later. Some exchange
students feel obligated to take on a really heavy academic load, while
others want to take as few courses as possible, hoping for a year
of "vacation" from school.
Exchange students must consult their counselor before attempting to
change any course they are initially
enrolled in.
District
5080 encourages inbound Rotary exchange students to regard their year here
as a time to learn or improve their English, and experience a new
culture. They study subjects that are of interest, but for which
they can not usually receive school credits in their home county.
This is the preferred approach.
A
special effort should be made to introduce the student to key teachers and
school staff. Ask them to help orient the exchange student to the school, and
keep in mind that some students come
from radically different school systems than ours. If possible, try to
arrange for a classmate to go
to and from school with the exchange student for the first few days, to
help the student become
familiar with school procedures, etc. Make sure that the student knows how
to get to and from school on his own, either by school bus or on foot. |
Return to Top
| Finances
must also be discussed with the student within the first week of arrival. The
minimum $500.00 emergency
fund that each student is required to bring on exchange is to be deposited
in a local bank or credit
union as soon as possible - preferably in a savings account requiring that
withdrawals have the signatures of both the student and the
counselor.
A
separate checking account
should be set up for the student's normal expenses, and cash machine
access is desirable, although
certainly not essential. Tell the student how much monthly allowance is
paid by the club, and how and
when the student will receive it.
Allowance
checks should be issued at or
before the beginning of each month, and you should take steps to ensure
that they are being received on time. At the same time as you are discussing
finances, make sure that the student
has the required medical insurance coverage and, if not, arrange with
the club Exchange Committee
Chair to obtain the coverage as soon as possible. |
Return to Top
| Within
the first week, check to ensure that the student has:
|
| |
A.
A validated 1-year STUDENT VISA for
Canada/U.S.A. as applicable (the passport should
have a yellow paper attached to it) |
| |
B.
A
validated 1 -year VISITORS VISA for the Canada/U.S.A. (this will be
required for travel within
the District) |
| |
C.
A return air ticket with an open return date. Note that the
counselor should take custody of the return air ticket and keep it in a
safe but convenient locations, so that it will be available in the event
of an emergency. |
Return to Top
| Ensure
that both the student and all host families clearly understand the
established chain of command
and channels of communication within the Youth Exchange Program, which are
as follows. |
| A. |
If
either the student or the host parents have a problem or concern it should
first be discussed between the
student and host parents if possible. If it is a sensitive matter that
can not reasonably be discussed between them, or if it can not be resolved
at that level, the student or host
parent should take the matter up with you as the counselor. If you are
not available or able to deal with the problem, then the student or
host parent should refer it to the club's Youth Exchange Committee Chair.
If he is not available, the problem should be taken up with the District Youth Exchange Committee Vice
Chair responsible for that student,
or with the Chair of the District Youth Exchange Committee. |
| B. |
B.
If
as a counselor you have a problem with either the host parents or the
student that cannot be resolved through discussion with either or both of
them, it should be referred to the club's
Youth Exchange Committee Chair or, if he is not available, to the District
Youth Exchange Committee Vice Chair
responsible for that student, or to the Chair of the District
Youth Exchange Committee. |
Return to Top
| WHILE
THE STUDENT IS HERE |
| 1. |
The
counselor should ensure that the new exchange student attends at least one
Rotary meeting as soon as possible
after arrival (preferably with a host parent, whether or not he or she is
a Rotarian.
Students
are expected to attend club meetings from time to time (such as
"Partners Nights'), as well as
special meetings such as the visit of the District Governor, etc. This
provides an opportunity for the club members, their spouses, and the student to
get to know one another better.
This should help to promote greater interaction between the students and
club members and their families
during the year. |
| 2. |
While
exchange students are expected to participate in all special club events
and Rotary activities organized for
them, there should not be so many of these activities that the student is
spending little or no time with the host family, and this sometimes
happens. Keep in mind that the student
is supposed to be functioning as a member of the host family, but the
family may be reluctant to complain
that they are seeing very little of the student because of the activities
planned by Rotary. If this appears
to be a problem, discuss it immediately with the Chair of the club's
Youth Exchange Committee. |
| 3. |
Talk
to the exchange student (preferably in person rather than over the phone)
about once a week (at least
once every 2 weeks), and find out how he or she is getting along with the
current host family, with
other students at school, teachers, etc.
Talk
to each host family after the first week that
the student is with them, and then every couple of weeks, to see how the
student is adapting to the family
and generally getting along from their perspective. Meet with the
student at the first sign of any
problems arising.
|
| 4. |
Include
the student in special activates in your family from time to time, and
encourage the student to
regard your family as a "5th host family". Try to get other club
members to include the student in
their plans as well. Some activates that students will enjoy and benefit
from are:
A
Dinner, a
picnic, or a day at the cottage
B
Skiing,
snowmobiling, water-skiing, hiking, canoeing, fishing and other outdoor activities
C
Attending
or participating in sports such as hockey, curling, basketball, etc.
D
Touring
industrial plants and historical sites in the area
E
Attending
a circus, rodeo, fair, etc., and holiday trips with host families or
Rotary families. |
| 5. |
You
may want to arrange with the club's Youth Exchange Committee to have a
list of suggested activities
circulated among the club members, asking each member to select an
activity and date on which he
will include one or more inbound students in a family activity. |
| 6. |
Ensure
that you are aware of any travel plans of the student, that they comply
with the club's and District's
policies on student travel, and that approvals are obtained well in
advance from the dub, the
District, and the student's parents when required |
| 7. |
Make
sure the student is communicating with his or her family regularly and is
making reports periodically
to the sponsoring Rotary club. Some sponsoring clubs require regular
formal written reports,
although most don't. |
| 8. |
Make
sure the current and next host families co-ordinate the move between
families generally in line
with the hosting schedule they were provided with. If there will be more
than a few days deviation
from the schedule, ensure that you are advised well in advance - and know
the reason for the change.
Make sure that no host family tries to either hang onto a popular student
for a longer period than
scheduled, or dump an unpopular one earlier than planned. |
| 9. |
Act
as referee between host families if there is any conflict regarding the
student's activities. This can
be a sensitive issue around Christmas, Mothers' Day, etc. Try to avoid
conflicts by not scheduling
the student to move from one family to another just before Christmas, the
student's birthday, etc. Make
sure that the student's birthday is recognized by the Rotary club! |
| 10. |
While
it is important that inbound students attend a Rotary club meetings
shortly after they arrive and
on other special occasions, they should not be expected to take on any
speaking engagements until
they have had at least a month or two to settle in and develop something
of a local perspective.
This
is true even if they were reasonably proficient in English when they arrived. Talk to
the club's Youth Exchange Chair about your student doing a presentation to
the host club (either
individually, or with other students) at an appropriate time and place,
and encourage other Rotary
clubs and organizations in your area to invite the student to present a
program at their meetings. |
|
DISTRICT 5080 |
 |
YOUTH
EXCHANGE PROGRAM
COUNSELOR'S
INBOUND CHECKLIST
|
| Student's
Name:_____________________________________________ |
| Home
Country and District:________________ Arrived on (Date________ |
| Place
a Y or N in the box beside each statement to indicate YES or NO |
| [
] |
Was
the student's I -year Canadian or U.S. Student Visa checked? |
| [
] |
Was
the student's 1 -year Canadian or U.S. Visitors Visa checked? |
| [
] |
Was
the student's return plane ticket checked and retained by Counselor? |
| [
] |
Were
District 5080 Youth Exchange Program rules reviewed with the student? |
| [
] |
Were
hospital/medical insurance documents checked and in order |
| [
] |
Does
the student have insurance purchased through Rotary District
5080? |
| [
] |
If
"Yes", insert the policy number:________ |
| [
] |
Does
the student have insurance purchased in his/her own country? |
| [
] |
Does
the student have any insurance?
If
"NO", immediately contact the District 5080
Insurance coordinator,
Bev
Phillips - Castlegar Savings Insurance
Agencies
100 630
17th Street Castlegar, BC V1N
4G7 Canada B: 250 365 3368 H: 250 693
8876
bphillips@castlegarinsurance.com |
| [
] |
Has the
student deposited an emergency fund with the counselor as co-signer?
If
"Yes", state amount $______and
where the account is held:_______________ |
| [
] |
Has the
student been advised of the first host family and hosting period? |
| [
] |
Has the
student been advised of the second host family and hosting period? |
| [
] |
Has
the student been advised of the third host family and hosting period? |
| [
] |
Has the
student been advised of the last host family and hosting period? |
| [
] |
Have
arrangements been made for the student to meet informally with the host
families, Rotary counselor, Club Youth Exchange Chairman, etc.?
If
YES, When:_________? |
|
All
of the above steps were completed by (date)____________
Signature
of Rotary Counselor________________________ |
Return to Top
|
