CCI Greenheart Host Family Handbook

The Greenheart of Cultural Exchange

Host Family Handbook Your guide to welcoming an exchange student into your home.

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Stay Informed!

Everything you need to know is on the Database.

The CCI Greenheart Online Database contains many resources available to help you with your hosting experience. Be sure to log in and check it out to learn more about: Important Resource Documents: Program

Rules and a Travel Request Form

Tools for Adjustment: It is natural for

both you and your student to experience a period of adjustment. We’ve provided some tips and resources to help you through this process.

Evaluations: Your feedback is very important to us. There are three evaluations that you can complete during your hosting experience. Please tell us what you think.

Login to the Database at www.ccigreenheart.org/online (or go to the CCI website (ccigreenheart.org) and click on the “Login” link in the top right corner of every page on the website.)

Please write your login information here: (the same login information used for your host family application) My CCI Greenheart Username: My CCI Greenheart Password: (both the username and password are case sensitive) If you forget your username and password, your username is generally the email address you used to apply. To get your password, click on the “Forgot Password” link on the login page.

Enter your username at the prompt, and you will be automatically emailed your username and a temporary password.

Thank you for your willingness to host a CCI Greenheart high school exchange student in your home!

We are honored to welcome you to the family.

Dear Host Family: This handbook will offer you information that should be useful as you prepare for and participate in the program. Although every hosting experience is unique, there are factors common to most situations. This handbook offers advice about being a successful host family, outlines CCI Greenheart policies which may be relevant to you as a host family, and summarizes some of the common challenges of hosting, along with potential solutions. It is brief and does not begin to address all the aspects of cultural adaptation, but nonetheless, it should provide you help with your initial questions.

In the United States, we enjoy a rich tradition of receiving exchange visitors into our homes. Families across the country, like yours, have offered safe accommodations, sustenance, guidance and care to teenagers from other countries for decades.

Americans understand that by giving of ourselves we receive a great deal in return, and recognize that exposure to different cultures and customs enhances our own lives.

Sharing with those from different experiences and language backgrounds has many rewards, as there is much to gain from the young people we receive in our homes.

By hosting you are contributing to the development of international understanding and harmony.

We realize that, at times, hosting is not always easy. Please know that you have the support of your Local Coordinator, and all of CCI Greenheart, throughout the experience: to help you prepare for it, to assist you and your student with adjustment issues, and help you adapt when your student returns home. To that end, we ask that you share with us, regularly and freely, your thoughts and questions. Thank you!

Sincerely, The CCI Greenheart Family ccigreenheart.org | The Greenheart of Cultural Exchange

TABLE OF CONTENTS CCI Greenheart Academic Year and Academic Semester Programs ‡ CCI Greenheart Overview .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 ‡ What to Do Before Your Student Arrives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 ‡ What to Expect When You’re Hosting First Few Days and Weeks…..…………………………....……….…….6 Culture Shock …………….…….……………………..…….…….…….7 Available Support……….………..…….……….……….………..……..10 Eight Simple Safety Tips….…….….……………….….………..……...11 Required Student Meetings.….…………….……….……..……………12 Volunteering and Greenheart Club……….…….…………..…….……..12 LC Greenheart Projects & Miscellaneous Activities…....…....….….......13 School Information.………….….…………..……………..…………....13 Private School Placement Program………..….…..….……….………....16 Program Rules.………..………….….………………….………….…....16 Travel Policy ….……..….….…………….…………….…………….…..21 Greenheart Trips for Students ……….…….……………….…..……….23 ‡ How to Prepare to Say Farewell ..….…..…..….………………....……….…24 ‡ Appendices Appendix A: CCI Greenheart Conditions of Participation….….….…...26 Appendix B: Disciplinary Procedures.………..……….…….……..…….32 Appendix C: Student Moves.………………………….………….….….34 Appendix D: Fair Trade at the Greenheart Shop.…………….…….…...35 Appendix E: Travel Abroad Scholarships.……….……..…...…….…..…36

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CCI Greenheart Overview CCI Greenheart: The Greenheart of Cultural Exchange Established in 1985, CCI Greenheart is a non-profit international education exchange organization dedicated to the promotion of cultural understanding, academic development, environmental consciousness and world peace.

CCI Greenheart offers cultural exchange programs in the U.S. that connect Americans with international students. As the leading nonprofit cultural exchange sponsor that blends service learning and volunteerism into all of our programs, we are effectively creating a community of compassionate and conscious global citizens. Through our unique Greenheart Club, CCI Greenheart encourages our American and international participants to make a difference through active participation in environmental and social service projects.

CCI Greenheart is one of six branches of Greenheart International, a global nonprofit organization headquartered in Chicago, IL committed to connecting people and planet to create a more peaceful and sustainable global community. We achieve this through a unique and diverse collection of programs fostering cultural exchange, eco-fair trade, volunteerism, personal development and environmentalism.

Cultural exchange involves many people, but your first point of contact is your Local Coordinator. Here is the communication flow: Host Family

Exchange Student

Your Local Coordinator Area Coordinator/Regional Manager Regional Director Program Manager (in Chicago Office)

CCI Greenheart CEO and President

J-1 High School Program Director

(in Chicago Office)

(in Chicago Office)

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Sending Partner (Overseas)

Student's Natural Parents (Overseas)

What to Do Before Your Student Arrives Attend the Host Family Orientation Your Local Coordinator (LC)—probably the same person who recruited you, interviewed your family in your home and screened your application to become a host family—will provide you with an orientation. This meeting could last an hour or more and its purpose is to familiarize you with the upcoming semester or year, and to answer questions. Many CCI Greenheart Local Coordinators place several students in their communities and will, therefore, schedule an orientation for all the local host families at the same time. If so, you will be able to trade ideas with other hosts and perhaps receive hints from experienced host families. If, after you have reviewed the materials and received an orientation, you continue to have questions, it is very important that you contact your LC to get answers.

This orientation will take place before your student’s arrival.

Educate yourself When you receive your host family packet of information, you also will receive a short description of the country from which the student originates. Knowing more about the environment in which your student was raised will be a first step toward getting to know and understand the student. Look for more information in your public library, and update yourself on current events related to that country.

Manage expectations As you look forward to the arrival of your exchange student, remember that he or she is participating in this program to learn about living in a different country. The student will learn about our country’s strengths and weaknesses, our attitudes and beliefs, as well as our languages and customs. The student’s image of the U.S. will be greatly influenced by your attitude and behavior. On the other hand, the purpose of the program is not to convince one another that one country or culture is better than another, nor is it to convert a person to one’s beliefs. The program promotes the concept that “different” does not mean “better” or “worse.”

Keep an open mind against stereotypes Host families and students should not allow stereotypes of different cultures to influence their judgment. Keep an open mind. Some assumptions or prejudgments may inhibit your ability to understand and enjoy your student.

Contact your student Contact your student by telephone, e-mail, Skype, Facebook, etc. When communicating with the student, include information about your home, family and daily activities.

Pictures are always welcome. Describe your community, the surrounding area and the high school. Explain the school’s class schedule, number of classes per day, the time school starts and ends, and how the student will travel to and from school. Having this information before arrival bolsters the student’s confidence. Do not be concerned if you 4

do not hear from your student right away, but if you are unable to reach your student for some time, tell your LC! Prepare for arrival at the airport!

Plan for the airport meeting with your student: • Make and confirm a meeting time with your LC and student.

• Call the airline early to check whether the flight is on schedule.

• Make and bring a ‘welcome sign.’

• Arrive at the airport early!

Remember that your student will be arriving at a strange airport in a strange country after many, many hours of travel. If no one is waiting, your student will be very disappointed!

If your LC does not go to the airport, please call as soon as you get home and let the LC know immediately that you have met your student. The LC reports this information to CCI Greenheart, and CCI Greenheart notifies the student’s parents through our sending partner.

What to do if your student is not on the plane: It can happen for various reasons that your student misses their flight.

If the student isn’t on the flight, the host family should contact an airline representative immediately to see if the student missed a connecting flight somewhere en route. The host family should also call the CCI Greenheart emergency number. CCI Greenheart staff will then contact the sending partner and keep the host family apprised of the situation. Students are also advised to call the emergency number and CCI staff will be able to convey information between the student and host family.

Arriving home • Do not plan a big reception.

• Have your student call home to advise their natural parents of their safe arrival.

A short call is appropriate. If the student does not ask to call, suggest it!

• Give a short house tour: bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, common areas. Keep it brief. In many countries, toilet paper is not normally placed in the toilet, but in the wastebasket due to limitations of sewage systems and piping in the homes.

Make sure you explain how it is different in the US and be patient with the student’s lapses.

• Make sure the student knows how to operate the toilet, shower, and where the soap, shampoo, and towels are located.

• If early evening or later, let the student sleep. If it is AM or afternoon, try to keep the student up until 6 or 7pm to minimize jet lag and help with the body clock adjustment.

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What to Expect When You’re Hosting First Few Days and Weeks During the first couple days, it may be best not to introduce the student to a tightly packed schedule of events. Allow the student time to recover from the long journey, become accustomed to the new time zone and begin to feel comfortable.

Explain your family’s lifestyle Take nothing for granted. Nearly everything will be new and strange for the student.

These things may seem obvious, but your student may need you to explain to them: • How to use the faucets, general appliances and washing machine • What food they may eat when it is not meal time • Where trash (including feminine hygiene products) can be disposed of • Where cleaning supplies are stored Explain your family’s habits and routines, including; • Your weekday schedule for work and school • Guidelines or rules for using TV, computer internet, phones, and listening to music • Your family’s meal schedule It is important to clarify your parental expectations and household rules: • What are your parental expectations?

• What are your weekday and weekend curfews?

• What chores will your student be responsible for?

• What transportation are you able to provide? What are your expectations for requesting rides? What other forms of transportation are available?

It is also helpful to review common American lifestyles: • Hygiene — In some other cultures, bathing is less frequent than in the U.S. It is okay for hosts to advise their students when their students are not bathing, washing their hair and laundering their clothing with sufficient frequency. Students want to know when they are offensive to others.

• Dress — Styles of dress are very personal; they also vary from country to country and, in the U.S., from region to region. CCI Greenheart counsels our exchange students to be observant of, and to conform to, the norms within their host families and schools. Hosts may exercise parental discretion regarding their student’s dress habits, although parents also may need to be flexible on this issue.

Students are expected to conform to hosts’ expectations regarding family rules, but don’t expect the student to remember everything; in fact, you may want to introduce only a couple new topics each day. Additionally, CCI Greenheart strongly recommends that you put these expectations in writing. Your student will also be struggling with English.

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Regardless of how much English the student has already learned, this will be the first time he or she must understand your English, which will be unique.

“Don’t be afraid to have a sit-down family meeting a couple of weeks into the stay and after the student and family have had a settling-in time. Share concerns and encourage the student to be open. When problems arise, go to the student and speak frankly and gently – but firmly – and be sure to state consequences for failure to follow rules. When you notice the student making advances toward fitting into your family, acknowledge those efforts. Make sure to model the behavior of having problems within the family with each other and being able to still love one another afterwards. Give lots of hugs and reassurance. Ask the student what he/she might need help with. Aid in reassuring him/her that it is all about learning and growing!”

­ —From a Former Host Family

Tour the neighborhood A short tour of the school and your neighborhood might be useful, if possible or practical, within the first few days following arrival.

Attend the student orientation All exchange students must attend a student orientation within 2 weeks of their arrival.

The Local Coordinator will arrange the meeting and alert you of the date and time.

Students are required to attend this initial orientation so please ensure their attendance.

Schedule a Second Site Visit to your home Any time within 60 days of your student’s arrival, you will be visited by another CCI Greenheart Local Coordinator. The U.S. Department of State now requires all J-1 visa sponsors, such as CCI Greenheart, to send a representative to complete a second visit of all host families’ homes within the first 30–60 days of the exchange student’s arrival. This visit is to verify that the information provided in the host family application has been accurately portrayed. Here is what to expect for the second site visit: • You will receive a call from the visiting local coordinator to arrange a day and time for the brief visit.

• Only one adult needs to be present; it is not required that the exchange student or other members of your family be present.

• The visiting local coordinator will provide you with a letter from CCI Greenheart further explaining the visit.

• The visit should not take more than 30 minutes in total and will be similar to the house tour that you provided during your initial house visit.

We appreciate you making the time to receive this brief visit and thank you in advance.

Culture Shock We guarantee that your student will experience some form and degree of culture shock, but we also guarantee that each student will experience it differently. The information below describes some of the phases of adjustment to help you and your family understand some of your student’s behavior.

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Typical phases of culture shock 1. Initial euphoria (“honeymoon” phase). Everything is interesting. Student arrives and is the center of attention, an honored guest. Help your student begin to settle into a routine that helps them feel secure. Once they know how and when (and what!) is for dinner, where they will sleep, bathe, keep their clothing, and so on, they will begin the process of becoming a fully functioning family member.

2. Rejection. Discomfort begins (the honeymoon is over!). The student misses the daily routine and reassurances of home, including their friends, family, and language. Be supportive, gentle, non-judgmental, and understanding. If your student is critical, don’t take it personally. Often a student who says “I don’t like this” means “I don’t understand this and it makes me uncomfortable.”

After school begins, the student may be shocked at how difficult it is to make new friends. A student who may be at the top of the class at home may find it difficult to be “average” or worse because of unfamiliarity with English or with the U.S. school system. Encourage your student to become involved in activities, even if it is hard at first, as this will help them make friends and keep busy.

3. Adjustment: the road to recovery. The student begins to accept the new environment, culture and language. What was once threatening and unknown to your student has become familiar and acceptable.

4. Recovery: adaptation. The student finds a place and a role in the new culture.

He or she gains the confidence needed to become “bicultural.”

Although, it is likely that your student will experience some form of culture shock, most students do not experience it severely. They might exhibit one or two of the listed symptoms. Keep in mind that your student cannot totally control his or her reactions or symptoms. Some students are adept at concealing their discomfort, while others become very vocal. Some students will withdraw and spend as much time as possible avoiding people. Others will become highly critical of everything in their new environment. Some students become upset by very minor incidents.

Some Symptoms of Culture Shock • Family tension and conflict • Homesickness • Chauvinistic attitudes • Boredom • Hostility and stereotyping of Americans • Withdrawal • Crying • Excessive sleeping • Wanting to speak primarily in native tongue, not English • Compulsive eating • Physical ailments such as headache, stomach ache • Irritability • Exaggerated cleanliness Much of the information here has been adapted from Robert Kohl’s, Survival Kit For Overseas Living, published

by Intercultural Press.

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“The adjustment seemed difficult at first and although our student wanted an ‘American family’ experience, he resisted aspects that were not in his norm or routine…Communication is very important! Be open with your student and encourage dialogue about any issues that arise. Do not let things go, thinking they will work themselves out. Discuss the issues and try to clearly express your expectations. Never assume that the student understands – always allow your student to verbalize their perception or understanding. The language is often more of a barrier than you realize. Be patient!”

—From a Former Host Family

5 R's of culture change When experiencing another culture, there are five changes (listed below) that you will likely face. As a host family, you are going to experience the new culture of your exchange student. You will also experience a new culture of your very own life because things are going to change at home. These changes have many positive aspects, but they also often create transition stress, which is normal, natural, and will surface in different ways for different people. It is critical to prepare yourself—and your student—to manage the possible stresses in your transition.

What Changes

Common Feelings and Reactions

Routines

Schedules, meal times, how you travel • Tired or stressed, without a clear cause around, amount of free time, a need for more • Not ‘anchored’ or ‘grounded’ teaching

Reactions

The way people interact and communicate, from greetings to facial expressions to what are appropriate behaviors and reactions in different situations.

• Confusion and uncertainty • Less confidence • Withdrawing or isolating • Criticizing new culture

Roles

Roles you are used to playing (being a parent, being a family member) look and feel different with the new culture. You may assume new roles, which you may have mixed feelings about being labeled as (“the exchange student,” “the German”).

• Mixed emotions!

• Excitement for new desired roles • Defensiveness for unwanted roles • Sadness for lost or lessened roles • Confusion for changed roles

Relationships

Relationships around you can change. You may drift apart from certain relationships as your family adopts new routines. You may experience a deeper connection with some friends and family despite the newness. At the same time, you have to invest energy in creating relationships in your own environment so that you create a family bond with the new person in your life.

• It takes a lot of energy to build relationships—but it is also satisfying • A sense of loss, often intially, with less communication back home

• Sometimes adopting, sometimes Reflections about You may start to notice that you change in subtle and not so subtle ways. You may adopt rejecting the new culture ways of Yourself new behaviors, a different lifestyle, and may being or doing learn a lot about what you value most. You • Who am I? are growing and developing, becoming more • What’s most important to me? aware of who you are, culturally and individ- • Where do I feel at home? ually speaking. This has many benefits, but also often involves confusion and uncertainty.

Adapted from: Berardo, K. “The 5 Rs of Culture Change” in Berardo, K., and Deardorff, D. (2012) Building Cultural Competence: Innovative Activities and Models. Stylus Publishing.

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Communication You can help your student by keeping communication open and clear. Be aware that your family has unspoken habits and rules that are so familiar to you that you are hardly aware of them, but which can be completely new (and misunderstood) by your exchange student. Encourage your student to express to you what he or she finds strange, and accept those expressions without becoming defensive. Be a good listener. Show your student that his or her feelings matter to you enough that you want to clarify them. Accept that there may be confusion. Be patient when resolving the confusion. Your student may seek comfort by finding and clinging to others who speak the same language. Although it is stressful and exhausting to communicate all day in a new language, insist that your student speak English 95% of the time and, eventually, all the time. Feeling comfortable with the language is critical to overcoming culture shock.

Friends Finding the right new friends will help a student overcome culture shock. If you have a teenage son or daughter, it’s likely the student will spend a lot of time, at least initially, socializing with them. Soon, though, the student should become involved in activities of special interest to him, and your family should encourage this. The school play, the school yearbook committee, the school newspaper, sports teams, the band, the choir are all possibilities, depending on the student’s interests. Many schools have an international club.

Keep in mind, though, that some teenagers are less gregarious and outgoing than others, and are more comfortable with a small circle of friends.

Available Support Regular monthly contact You will be contacted at least one time per month by your Local Coordinator. Please respond to your LC’s phone calls or emails. It is important that you be honest with your updates. The LC is communicating with you to better understand how you and your student are adjusting to one another. If you have questions, please ask! If you have a concern, however small, please let your LC know right away so that it can be addressed.

And of course, most of the time you will be having a wonderful time learning new things and seeing America through a teenager’s eyes—so share that with your LC, too!

Problems Your Local Coordinator and their Regional Manager or Regional Director, are available to you provide support every step of the way.

Your Local Coordinator will help guide you and your student through problems and adjustment issues as they occur. At every stage of the program there are strategies to better understand and work through difficulties, and your LC can help. It is very important that, as you encounter challenges, you keep the Local Coordinator in the loop.

Please contact your LC if during this initial getting-to-know-you period anything seems amiss to you. Surely there will be a great deal of adjustment to make on both sides. Your 10

LC can help you determine whether you are having “normal” adjustment issues or whether something more serious needs to be addressed. Should you be unable to reach the LC, you also may call the Regional Manager or Regional Director.

Eight Simple Safety Tips It’s important to keep in mind that your new son or daughter has grown up in a very different environment. Many things which seem obvious to you will seem new and foreign to them. These Simple Safety Tips can help you establish a safe and happy environment for your new family member.

1. Help your student learn your address and phone number as soon as possible.

Take them for a tour of your neighborhood and the area around the high school, pointing out landmarks and helping them to learn street names along the way.

You may even want to help them map the area, highlighting routes to and from places they may visit often. Show them places they can go and numbers they can call if they are lost, need help or feel uncomfortable.

2. Remind your student that they should check with you first before giving out their address, phone number or personal information to someone they’re not familiar with.

3. Monitor your student’s online activity. Keep computers in a central location and be sure that students do not give out personal or host family information.

4. Make sure your student knows to check with you first before riding with or going to the home of someone new.

5. Remind your student there is safety in numbers – he/she shouldn’t go out alone and should avoid 1:1 unsupervised situations with individuals with whom your family is not familiar or uncomfortable.

6. Place reasonable limits on your physical interaction. Remember that many students come from cultures or homes in which affection is not openly displayed.

Respect your student’s wishes regarding physical contact, including his/her right to reject displays of affection when it makes him/her uncomfortable.

7. Reassure your student that they can always share their difficulties as well as happiness with you, your Local Coordinator, Area Coordinator/Regional Manager, your Regional Director or CCI Greenheart Chicago Office staff.

8. Make sure that your student knows his/her school counselor and would feel comfortable discussing any issues of concern with him/her.

Adapted from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children’s (1989) Knowing My 8 Rules for Safety; Darkness to Light’s (2004) 7 Steps to protecting our children by CCI Greenheart

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Required Student Meetings After the student orientation, your student is required to attend two more meetings throughout the year: • A Midyear Meeting usually held around the middle of January, provides an opportunity for students to assess the program to date while discussing adjustment issues with their LC and other students in the area, if there are any. Your LC will schedule this mandatory midyear meeting and tell you the date in advance. Please ensure your student attends.* *Students studying for only one semester do not have to attend a midyear meeting. • A Re-Entry Meeting is held near the end of the program, typically in May. Students evaluate the program and begin preparing for the challenges of returning home and re-entering their own culture. Your LC will schedule this mandatory re-entry meeting and tell you the date in advance. Please ensure your student attends.

Volunteering and Greenheart Club Volunteering can be a great way for students to give back to the community and become engaged with their new environment. Not to mention, they have a great example in you, their host family! All CCI Greenheart exchange students are required to complete volunteer service while on their program. We ask that students complete 4 hours per semester, for a total of 8 hours for full year students. Previous students have volunteered to help at nursing homes, libraries, community youth centers, state parks, reforestation projects, environmental clean-ups and more. We encourage you to help your students find ways to become involved in your community and to volunteer with them!

Once they start volunteering, students have the opportunity to get rewarded for the hours they complete in the Greenheart Club. Students sign up for the Greenheart Club in their CCI Greenheart database account and log their volunteer hours each time they do a volunteer activity. At the end of the year, CCI Greenheart tabulates the volunteer hours and students are rewarded according to the hours they submitted. Students can earn t-shirts, features on the CCI Greenheart website and blog, and more. Top Greenheart Club members can earn grants to do a Greenheart Project and even the chance to win a weekend in Chicago!

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LC Greenheart Projects & Miscellaneous Activities Local Coordinator Greenheart projects Some LCs will plan Greenheart Projects, which are either environmentally or socially focused community service projects. Please encourage your students to attend, and if you are already affiliated with a volunteer organization, get in touch with your LC about it and collaborate! It is a great way to meet other students and families and do something good in your community!

Miscellaneous activities The LC may also, from time to time, be able to arrange some special activities for the students. Such activities could include theme-oriented parties (e.g., at Halloween), trips to nearby points of interest, meetings with civic officials or other excursions. Student attendance at these activities is usually optional, although students are encouraged to attend.

Often, host family members are invited to participate in these activities. Host families who have ideas for activities or gatherings with other exchange students and host families should feel free to make suggestions to their LC!

School Information High school enrollment Department of State regulations require that all participants in the Academic Year or Semester Program must be enrolled full-time in an accredited academic U.S. public or private high school. Students not attending high school full-time lose their visa authorization and are subject to program dismissal and repatriation. Exchange students may not be home-schooled.

The Local Coordinator will have secured permission for your student to enroll in the local high school. In some instances the Local Coordinator may have established a tentative schedule of classes before the student’s arrival. However, very soon after arrival, you should secure an appointment and take the student to school to officially register and confirm a course schedule. Some students have to take certain classes as dictated by their home country and school. Be sure to check in with your student about required classes they may need to take. Classes can be changed as school policies permit during the first days or weeks of school. Each school has its own procedures, and those procedures should be followed. When classes have been confirmed, the school will provide a copy of the student’s schedule, which you should give to the LC for CCI Greenheart’s records and review.

The U.S. Department of State, which authorizes and monitors high school exchange programs, and CCI Greenheart, strongly recommend that exchange students take U.S. history, as this would provide a strong background on U.S. culture. English courses are required throughout the year.

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School performance CCI Greenheart students are expected to maintain at least a “C” grade in all classes and have no failing grades while participating in the program. CCI Greenheart understands that some courses may simply prove too difficult. Students finding themselves in a course that, despite their very best efforts, is too difficult should seek assistance from their Local Coordinators, host parents and/or school counselors to see about changing to another course. Perhaps they could even take a course in the same subject, but at a lower level. In any case, students must make sincere and concerted effort to succeed academically in all classes. A CCI Greenheart exchange student whose academic performance is consistently poor despite assistance is subject to a probationary period established by CCI Greenheart representatives and, in extreme cases, dismissal from the program.

School fees If the high school does not waive school fees and book rentals, the student is responsible for paying those fees. The student is also responsible for school activity fees, yearbook purchase, sports fees and so on. These fees are not the responsibility of the host family.

Some students agree in advance to a placement at a private high school and to pay the resulting fees. Sometimes CCI Greenheart will place students in private high schools that agree to waive tuition costs.

Tutors Occasionally, usually because of language limitations, a student will need the help of a tutor. Often the high school will have a tutoring service available through their National Honor Society, the Student Council or a peer tutoring group. If not, your LC will help to find a tutor. When students apply to CCI Greenheart’s program, they and their parents agree that, if necessary, they will pay for outside tutors to assist them to succeed academically.

School sports School policies pertaining to school league sports teams vary from state to state and school to school. CCI Greenheart does not guarantee to its participants that their high schools will permit them to participate on school teams. It should be noted that it is contrary to standards set by the Council on Standards for International Educational Travel (CSIET) and Department of State regulations for any exchange organization to set out deliberately to recruit an athlete for the purpose of enhancing a specific school’s sports team. Most state high school athletic associations prohibit students placed in direct placements from participating in any sport at the varsity level.

CCI Greenheart encourages students, when permitted by the school, to try out for sports teams, whether for league teams or intramural teams. Students who wish to participate in fall sports should complete necessary forms as soon as they can, even before arrival, when possible. If you believe your student has aspirations to participate in a fall sport, ask your school to provide appropriate forms to be completed. CCI Greenheart will assist in getting these forms to the student—by fax or email when necessary—to expedite the process.

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Greenheart High School Essay Contest Schools provide lots of resources to the community and CCI Greenheart exchange students. As a way for CCI Greenheart participants and American high school students to give back to schools, CCI Greenheart created the Greenheart Essay Contest. Each year, CCI Greenheart participants and their fellow American high school students can write an environmentally and socially themed essay and earn a $500 Greenheart grant to do a project in their school. A past winner used the Greenheart grant to plant 5 local trees in the schoolyard representing the 5 exchange students at their school. Ask your LC for the current Greenheart Essay Contest prompt. The deadline is typically at the end of March.

High school diplomas Many U.S. high schools will not, as a matter of their schools’ policies, grant high school diplomas to exchange students. CCI Greenheart has no control over policies established

by U.S. high schools. Some exchange students in the program expect that, if they pass all the required coursework, they will receive a U.S. high school diploma. Although some U.S. schools will give diplomas to exchange students who successfully complete the 12th grade, such schools are becoming fewer and fewer. Students who participate in the J-1 High school Program should understand that receipt of a U.S. diploma is not likely. They sign a document in which this is clearly stated.

Students who put pressure on school officials to receive diplomas risk CCI Greenheart’s permission to enroll students in those schools in the future. Schools have the right to expect exchange students to understand and accept school policies on this issue. CCI Greenheart supports school policies. Occasionally host parents will, on behalf of their students, put pressure on school officials to grant diplomas to their exchange students.

CCI Greenheart asks that host parents not apply such pressure. Some exchange students believe they must have a U.S. high school diploma in order to enter a U.S. college or university. This is seldom true. Most colleges and universities are interested primarily in the level and quality of the class work completed by the student and will not require international students to have U.S. high school diplomas for admission.

In addition, U.S. high schools have the right to determine the appropriate grade level for their exchange students. Schools base their decisions on the students’ academic records submitted as part of their application. However, schools must assign students to courses appropriate to the students’ educational backgrounds.

All schools agree to provide a written record or transcript of their exchange student’s performance during the semester or year. Whether or not students can use these transcripts to receive credit in their own countries for their academic work in the U.S. depends on their countries of origin.

Convalidation Students from Spain, Italy, Brazil, and South Korea are required to meet very precise guidelines established by their home countries. These students must “convalidate” their grades to receive credit. Your Local Coordinator will be able to help with this process.

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It is the student’s responsibility to ensure that all necessary steps are taken and to pay any required fees to complete the convalidation process.

F-1 High School Program At some point during the J-1 High school Program, your student may express a desire to come back to the U.S. to continue his or her education next year. If so, CCI Greenheart can help!

Our F-1 High School Program (formerly the Private School Placement Program) places international students in quality private high schools throughout the U.S. International students enrolled in private schools can attend for up to 4 years, are free to choose the geographic location and school they prefer, and are able to graduate and receive a diploma if they meet requirements. Our services not only provide students with the best experience possible, but also safeguard host families and schools from liability issues that can result from hosting a student who is not sponsored by an accredited exchange organization.

Private school students receive the same expert services and support your student currently receives on the J-1 High School Program, including supervision, 24-hour emergency assistance, health insurance and counseling.

For more information, please contact CCI Greenheart’s F-1 High School Program Director, Juliet Jones at privateschool@ccigreenheart.org, or contact your Local Coordinator.

Program Rules Driving Participants in CCI Greenheart’s Academic Year and Semester Programs may not drive any motor vehicle requiring an operator’s license, even if they have a valid driver’s license.

They are not permitted to purchase motor vehicles (including motorcycles) during the program. There is great risk for a teenager from another country—where driving laws, customs, and even signage can be quite different from those in the U.S.—to drive a motor vehicle in this country.

CCI Greenheart exchange students who violate this policy are subject to program dismissal and repatriation.

Under certain circumstances, CCI Greenheart permits students to take driver’s training courses. Such courses must be provided by professional and licensed instructors. Students are only permitted to drive with these licensed instructors, and should not drive a car belonging to the host family. In addition, some students may be able to apply for U.S. driver’s licenses. Your Local Coordinator will be able to provide more information. However, students who are able to secure U.S. driver’s licenses or permits still are NOT permitted to drive while on the program.

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It is important to note that in many countries it is very expensive to take a driver’s training course and to secure a driver’s license. As stated previously, an exchange student often will want to take advantage of his or her time in the U.S. to receive a license. However, in many states it is not possible for an exchange student to get a driver’s license because they cannot meet the necessary criteria. CCI Greenheart informs all our exchange students that there is no guarantee that they will be able to get driver’s licenses while in the U.S. Nor does CCI Greenheart consider securing a driver’s license a program priority. This fact may disappoint some of our students. We ask our host families to understand all the limitations regarding driving and driver’s licenses, and to assist their exchange students to also understand. If you have any questions on this issue, please contact your Local Coordinator.

Money CCI Greenheart recommends students to plan on spending an average of $300 to $350 per month. Most students will arrive with a prepaid debit/credit card. This way their natural parents will have the ability to add funds as needed. If students arrive with cash, hosts should not take the student’s money to disburse it on an as-needed basis. However, hosts parents may help students manage their funds by helping them open a checking or savings account. Host parents may not be co-signers on the account or have access to the student’s funds. Additionally, never borrow money from your exchange student.

Hosts are responsible for room and board, including lunches, and other extras your family may choose to provide. Hosts may elect to provide the student with a bag lunch for school and are obligated to pay for hot meals at school when bag lunches are not made available. The student is expected to cover personal expenses (toiletries, stationery, school supplies, postage, snacks purchased outside the home and entertainment). Students must reimburse their host families for long-distance telephone calls made on the hosts’ telephones. Students are advised to purchase prepaid calling cards to avoid charges to host family bills. We ask hosts to help students buy prepaid calling cards. If your student seems to be having financial problems or asks to borrow money from you, please seek assistance from your Local Coordinator immediately!

Visits by the students’ family members or friends CCI Greenheart requires all visits by the student’s family members or friends to be approved in advance by our sending partner and the CCI Greenheart Chicago Office. CCI Greenheart will not approve any such visits to occur until after February 1 for full-year students or after the end of the program for semester students. History has shown that natural parent visits can be disruptive of the adjustment process. The host family is never required to accept a visit from the student’s natural parents. If the natural parents or friends request a visit, please contact your Local Coordinator for assistance. CCI Greenheart generally does not permit visits from students’ romantic interests. Natural family members, other relatives or friends of the student are not permitted to accompany the student on the student’s arrival to the host community at the beginning of the program.

(See Appendix A: Student Conditions of Participation.)

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Religion CCI Greenheart encourages, but does not require, exchange students to attend religious services with their host families. Students who attend religious-related activities may have social and educational opportunities they would not otherwise experience. Church youth groups, for example, provide a possible link to teenagers outside the classroom.

Through the matching process, CCI Greenheart tries to place students accustomed or willing to attend religious services with host families who wish them to do so. However, no student—even a student who may have indicated on the application a willingness to attend religious services—should be compelled to attend them. In addition, host families are not permitted to proselytize, or to attempt to convert students to another religion.

Internet use Host parents must set the guidelines for their student’s access to the internet at home.

CCI Greenheart encourages parents to establish limits with which they are comfortable, including the amount of time students spend surfing and the sites to which they have access. CCI Greenheart recommends that online communication be limited to twice a week for 30 minutes. Placing the computer/smart phone/tablet in a central location where others can see the screen can assist in discouraging the surfing of inappropriate websites, uploading of pictures, and conversations via chat or video. Host parents should monitor student use of their computers/electronic devices just as they would monitor their own children’s use of computers/electronic devices. In addition, hosts should be alert to the possibility that their exchange students may spend too much time communicating with others, especially friends and family members in their own countries, by e-mail, Facebook, Skype, or other applications. Students who spend excessive time writing and receiving messages in their native language with family and friends from home usually find adapting to their hosts, school, and community to be more difficult. If you feel your student is spending too much time on the computer/electronic devices, but are uncertain how to regulate usage, please contact your LC for advice.

Cell phones and computers Students communicate with their friends via phone and computer. With the availability of prepaid phones and the increase in international cellular plans, it’s easy for a student to purchase and use a phone upon arrival. We discourage adding a student to the host family’s phone plan to avoid any unforeseen costs. With the majority of schools requiring students to do research and turn in typed papers, students should have availability to a computer for school use.

Communication with family and friends back home Just as overuse of e-mail can disrupt a student’s adaptation process, so, too, can too many telephone and Skype calls to/from family and friends back home. CCI Greenheart feels that two telephone/Skype calls home each month is ample. More than that could begin to interfere with the student’s relationship with the host family. Hosts who feel that their student is spending too much time communicating with family and friends (and that might include family and friends in the U.S.), and have questions about controlling these calls, should contact their LC for assistance.

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Social media Social media is a great way to communicate. Most students use Facebook or Twitter and have an account written in English and one in their first language, as well. Writing in English is preferred. If your student mentions they saw something negative being posted, or discussed, make sure to listen and address the situation with CCI Greenheart, the student’s school, etc. In addition, students are not to post derogatory comments about their host families, schools, local coordinators, use profanity or vulgar language and/or post photos of themselves or others engaging in any activities including but not limited to drinking, smoking, or those of a sexually suggestive nature. If you observe any of this activity, please alert your LC immediately.

CCI Greenheart does have both a student and host family Facebook page. Please be sure to join the other host families on the Facebook page.

Body-piercing and tattoos CCI Greenheart does not permit students to undergo body piercing or to obtain tattoos while on the program.

Hitchhiking Exchange students are not allowed to hitchhike under any circumstances.

Sex CCI Greenheart does not permit its secondary-school exchange students to participate in any sexual activity on this program.

Marriage CCI Greenheart does not permit its secondary-school exchange students to marry while on the program.

Violent behavior CCI Greenheart will not tolerate violent behavior by our exchange participants or their host families. Certainly, hosts should never strike their exchange student for any reason.

Baby-sitting We expect that many exchange students will be willing or even eager to baby-sit a host sibling from time to time. Hosts are welcome to request their student upon occasion to watch a younger sibling for a short period (an hour or two, perhaps). Hosts should offer to pay their student for the service. Many students enjoy taking care of their siblings for short periods, but no student should be required to baby-sit. Certainly no student should be expected to forgo extracurricular activities at school in order to return home to take care of a host sibling.

Alcohol and drugs CCI Greenheart may dismiss from the program participants who deliberately break U.S. 19

laws. In the U.S., teenagers are not permitted to drink or possess alcoholic beverages.

Students who drink alcohol, therefore, potentially may be dismissed from the program and repatriated. In many other countries, teenage drinking laws are more lenient than in the U.S. Nonetheless, students who elect to participate in the J-1 High School Program agree to adhere to all U.S. laws, including those regarding the consumption of alcohol.

All students agree not to smoke on the program, regardless of their age. Students are prohibited from smoking cigarettes while on the program. This is a behavior that may be permissible in their home country but students potentially may be dismissed from the program and repatriated.

CCI Greenheart requires its host families to guide and monitor their exchange students on the policies. Sometimes hosts are tempted to offer their students a glass of wine or champagne on special occasions. Please do not make these offers. Our students are given strong and definite instructions about alcohol. Hosts who innocently offer a drink on, for example, New Year’s Eve or for another special event, confuse the students who have been strongly warned against any consumption of alcohol. We need our hosts to help us maintain consistent and clear policies regarding alcohol.

Equally important is CCI Greenheart’s policy on drug abuse. Use of restricted substances, including marijuana, cocaine, heroin and psychedelic drugs, is absolutely prohibited. Any student violating this prohibition is subject to dismissal from the program.

Access to some illegal drugs, such as marijuana, is available in many U.S. communities.

Schoolmates may tempt or encourage exchange students to experiment with these drugs.

Hosts can help their students overcome these temptations by openly discussing this issue with them. Host parents and their student should formulate specific strategies to use if the student finds him or herself in a situation where drugs or alcohol are being consumed.

The best strategy is for the student to telephone the hosts and ask them to retrieve the student immediately from the questionable environment.

Student insurance Enclosed in the Student’s Arrival Packet is information regarding the student’s illness and accident insurance. Keep the information in a safe place and remember where it is stored. Insurance information sheets are available in the Resources section of your CCI Greenheart online account or you can ask your Local Coordinator for a copy. If medical attention is required, please call the toll-free number provided. Insurance personnel will confirm coverage and possibly a referral to a doctor, clinic or hospital in your community.

Note: Pre-existing conditions, general check-ups, routine dental and eye examinations, eye glasses, sports physicals, inoculations and vaccinations are not covered by the student’s insurance. For more information, please see your student’s insurance booklet. Some students are insured through their sending partner, not through CCI Greenheart, so it is important to check your student’s specific coverage.

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CCI Greenheart Travel Policy Please take a moment to review our travel policy. It will help to ensure that the student’s visa remains valid. It will also help us contact the student in the event of any emergency.

Please note—Government regulations require that CCI Greenheart know where the student is staying at all times. Therefore, if you, as a family go out of town and arrange for your student to stay with friends while you are away, you must give temporary contact information to your LC. Your LC’s contact information must be given to your temporary host family, as well.

Similarly, if your student plans to spend the night at a friend’s house, your student must tell you who it is, where they live, and what phone number can be used to reach them. ◊ Student Travel with Host Family Students may travel within the U.S. with their host parents during the program under the following guidelines: • If hosts are planning a brief trip away from home with their student (e.g. to a relative’s home or for a holiday), hosts must inform the Local Coordinator and provide an itinerary and contact numbers.

• If hosts are planning to travel internationally with their student, please see the “International Travel” section below. ◊ Student Travel Apart from Host Family Any travel apart from the host family must be pre-approved in writing by the CCI Greenheart Chicago Office by means of the Travel Request Form. The following guidelines must be observed, and final approval is at the discretion of CCI Greenheart.

Students are expected to spend all major holidays with their host families. ◊ Travel With Adult-Supervised School or Community Groups During the program, students may travel with adult-supervised school or community groups with signed prior approval of the CCI Greenheart Chicago Office. A completed CCI Greenheart Travel Request Form must be submitted to the CCI Greenheart Chicago Office for approval at least 2 weeks prior to the planned departure, if travel is within the U.S., or at least 3 weeks in advance of the planned departure if travel is outside the U.S. ◊ Independent Travel CCI Greenheart does not allow independent student travel. If the student would like to travel within the United States to visit friends or family this must first be approved by their host family, Local Coordinator, Natural Parents, and the CCI Greenheart Chicago Office. The student must complete a travel request form (TRF) detailing their entire itinerary and submit it to their Local Coordinator in order to request this approval. All travel must be chaperoned for the duration of the travel period. Visits to friends and natural family are allowed after February 1st for program year students and after the end of 21

the program for semester students provided that the family member or friend is over the age of 26 and has signed the TRF as the responsible adult. In some cases, the responsible adult will be asked to complete a criminal background check. Students are expected to spend all holidays with their host family. ◊ Travel to Home Country Students are not permitted to return to their home country at any time during the program except in cases of natural family emergencies. ◊ End of Program Travel If students wish to travel at the end of their program, they will need to be met by a responsible adult family member. A program release form will need to be submitted in advance, to the CCI Greenheart Chicago Office, for approval. No student will be permitted to travel without being accompanied by a responsible adult. ◊ International Travel The following guidelines must be followed very carefully. Any time exchange students travel outside the U.S. they may experience great difficulty re-entering the U.S. to complete the program. For this reason, CCI Greenheart does not permit students to return to their home countries to visit at any time and will permit students to travel outside the U.S. during the program only under the following circumstances: 1. A school field trip abroad 2. Natural family emergencies (usually involving health considerations) 3. Excursions with host families If the trip falls into one of the above categories: • Students must mail, by post, both their original DS-2019 form and a completed Travel Request Form to the CCI Greenheart Chicago Office at least 3 weeks prior to travel.

• If the request is approved, the CCI Greenheart Chicago Office will sign the student’s DS- 2019 form to authorize the travel and will provide the student with a visa support letter. Students should not leave the U.S. without these two items.

• It is the student’s responsibility to find out if there is any additional documentation (i.e. visas or other travel forms) necessary to travel to their destination.

CCI Greenheart is not responsible for any travel delays or cancellations due to late receipt of the DS-2019, mail services, or delays of DS-2019 deliveries. CCI Greenheart will not provide any compensation for costs as a result of these issues.

Even if international travel is approved by the Chicago Office, the following guidelines apply: 1. The student’s visa must not have expired. This can be determined by checking the date on the J-1 visa stamped or laminated into the student’s passport. If the visa has expired, the student cannot leave the U.S. until the program has ended, 22

since the visa will not allow re-entry into the U.S. This applies primarily to students who have extended their program from the fall semester to the entire year.

2. The student’s visa must be multiple-entry. Again, this can be determined by checking the visa stamped or laminated into the student’s passport. There is a category called “Entries” that will be labeled either “1” or “M” (for multiple). If the entry is a “1,” students cannot leave the U.S. unless they have no intention of returning.

3. The student’s passport must include an I-94. When students originally enter the United States, immigration authorities from the Department of Homeland Security issue an electronic I-94, and stamp the passport. I-94 documentation is available at https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/ 4. Students must have and present their signed DS-2019 form. When reentering the U.S., the student must present the DS-2019 form, the document issued by CCI Greenheart to students prior to their arrival in the U.S. (It is a full-sheet document with multiple signatures and stamps, and has DS-2019 in a very small font in the bottom left corner.)

Important: It can be risky for a student to leave the U.S. in the middle of the program, if he or she intends to return to complete the program. If proper procedures are not followed, or the student’s documents are not in order, it is possible that the student will not be permitted to re-enter the U.S. Please ask your Local Coordinator for help if the student has any plans to leave the U.S. temporarily. Please know a student can be dismissed from the program for any unapproved travel.

Greenheart Trips Exchange students love to see as much of the USA as possible. CCI Greenheart organizes short trips throughout the year to destinations like Hawaii, New York, and California.

These are more than just tourist vacations. Greenheart trips combine the values of CCI Greenheart to create focused experiences for exchange students that promote cultural sharing, leadership development, environmental awareness, and community service.

100% of past CCI Greenheart trip participants recommend these trips to other students.

You and your student will receive emails about possible CCI Greenheart trips during the year. If you have a son or daughter in high school, they are also able to attend a trip with your student!

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How to Prepare to Say Farewell The last semester will go quickly. Students may feel conflicting emotions. Many are looking forward to seeing their family and friends back in their home country, but they also don’t want to leave their host families and friends here in the United States. It’s difficult for our students to leave. You have taken care of them, supported them, created memories together, and gave them the opportunity to live their dream. You can help them say farewell.

The end of the year is bittersweet. Emotions can start to escalate on both sides. For the student, it can be hectic. Spending time with everyone, completing school for the year, getting in some last minute sightseeing, and of course, cramming their suitcases with favorite products can lead to some frustrating moments. Some, mentally, “check out” early.

For host families, emotions can be conflicted. You may think about your house going back to normal or not wanting to think of your student leaving. Hence, tensions can rise and disagreements can happen.

Get out the calendar. For many, there will be prom, school events, award shows, graduation parties, goodbye parties, and the list goes on. Sit down with your son/daughter and plan out the last month or two of the program. Plan some special activities together for just your family, as well as activities that include your student’s friends. Many students would love a goodbye party, while some choose to have an outing with family and close friends.

Make lists. The end of the year can fly by. Going to the store at 8:00 p.m. the night before a flight is not a memorable last night. Make a list with your student of things they want to purchase before departing. Make sure to have a scale available to weigh suitcases.

Also, students should have extra money available for the airport for any overweight or extra baggage. Help them prepare ahead of time so you can all spend quality time together.

Keep communicating. Sometimes, it’s easy to let things build up. Little things become magnified. A student or family member acting irritable or exceptionally quiet can be misunderstood. Ask questions and express your feelings in a positive manner. Sometimes people start to shut down or cause arguments because it’s easier than having to say goodbye.

Say, “Farewell for now.” With the internet, smart phones, Skype, etc. keeping in touch can be easy. You may plan to visit your student, while some students may be already figuring out when to visit here next.

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Departure information The partner organizations in students’ home countries are responsible for booking students’ return tickets, based on the dates you suggest to your Local Coordinator.

To prepare for your student’s departure: • Tell your LC about the student’s departure dates.

• Confirm their flight information well ahead of time and again the day before departure. You can view their flight information in your online account.

• Call the airline and provide your phone number to be notified of any changes.

Flight information changes frequently at the very last minute. If your contact information is on file, the airline will contact you.

• Ensure your student has their flight numbers and departure times. They likely will not have an actual paper ticket.

• Students should leave 7–10 days after the last full day of school.

If you have any questions, ask your LC. Visa information CCI Greenheart has been designated by the U.S. Department of State as an exchange visitor program sponsor. The Department of State authorizes CCI Greenheart to issue DS-2019 forms to exchange students participating in these programs. Students present these forms, along with their passports, to U.S. Consulates abroad to apply for J-1 (exchange visitor) visas. J-1 visas permit the students to enter the U.S. strictly for the purpose of participating in our program. The program is described on the DS-2019 form, and the Department of State does not permit deviations from this description. When the U.S. Consulate approves granting the visa, the visa is laminated into the student’s passport.

On arrival in the U.S. the student presents the DS-2019, the passport, and the J-1 visa to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents at the port of entry. DHS then will issue an electronic I-94 and stamp the passport. DHS returns the DS-2019 to the student, who must preserve this for later use.

Students are not permitted to change from a J-1 to another visa. CCI Greenheart will not authorize the student to transfer to another J-1 program.

Students are authorized to remain in the U.S. until the expiration date of the program, either January 28 (for 1st semester students) or June 28 (full year or 2nd semester students). Program dates for secondary school exchange students cannot be extended.

(Exception: Some students may, in very special circumstances, extend from a first semester program to a full-year program.)

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Appendices

Appendix A CCI Greenheart Conditions of Participation LRD: September 2014 All participants in the J-1 High School Program in the United States and their natural parents or guardians must read and agree to abide by the Terms and Conditions outlined below.

The Academic Year Program in the United States is a homestay program, based on daily life in a family, school and community. It is not a travel program. Its purpose is cultural exchange, which requires the willingness to learn and adapt with understanding and appreciation to the customs of a new culture, community and family, which may be very different from one’s own.

Students in this program are representatives of their own cultures, and do their best to earn respect for the people of their countries. Host families are not paid or financially reimbursed for hosting. Their reward is the opportunity to get to know about the student and his or her country and culture.

EVERY PARTICIPANT AGREES IN ADVANCE TO ACCEPT THE FOLLOWING CONDITIONS: 1. To accept the host family selected in any part of the country (CCI Greenheart welcomes hosts from all races, creeds, colors, religious persuasions, sexual orientation, and social levels). (Note: host families must have sufficient financial resources to host; host families are not permitted to proselytize. All host families are thoroughly screened before they are permitted to receive a student. CCI Greenheart representatives visit families in their own homes, interview personal references, and take other steps to ensure suitability of the host family.)

2. To live as a participating member of the host family and to accept normal family responsibilities; and to adapt to and live within the rules and customs of the host family, showing respect for the host parents. Example: Host parents must approve all activities of the student; host parents must know where the student is, with whom and when the student will return home from the activity.

3. To maintain a satisfactory level of academic performance and appropriate behavior in school, including completing all course work and attendance requirements. Students must demonstrate serious effort and a positive, cooperative attitude. Absence from school is permitted only for cases of genuine illness (doctor’s documentation may be requested if there are doubts). Regular school attendance is required. Participation in school sports is NOT guaranteed to any participants of the CCI Greenheart Academic Year and Semester Program.

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4. To accept and pay all expenses for an individual tutor, if the student proves incapable of achieving academic success because of low-level English proficiency, until such time as the student is capable of succeeding academically without a tutor’s assistance.

5. To obey all laws of the United States, the host community, and the state in which it is located; and to obey all rules of CCI Greenheart. Note: U.S. laws prohibit anyone under 21 years of age from purchasing and/or consuming alcohol, and anyone under 18 from purchasing cigarettes or tobacco products. Students participating in the Academic Year Program agree NOT to smoke, purchase or use tobacco throughout the duration of the program. This includes conventional cigarettes, electronic “e” cigarettes, vaporizers, herbs, etc.

6. NOT to drive or purchase a car, motorbike or any motor vehicle requiring an operator’s license. CCI Greenheart rules and insurance restrictions prohibit the use of any motor vehicle by exchange students except in the course of licensed and bonded driver education programs. Students may take part in such classes only with written permission of their natural parents, host parents and CCI Greenheart coordinator. Students who drive cars or motorized vehicles are subject to immediate program dismissal and repatriation.

7. NOT to hitchhike at any time during the program.

8. To repay hosts promptly for any and all long distance telephone calls made by the participant; and to pay for any damage caused to the property of the host family, school, hotel or other site visited during the program.

9. To arrive in the host country with round-trip international and domestic air tickets.

10. To travel to the homestay independently, to travel from the homestay as directed by CCI Greenheart, and during the program to travel only with members of the host family unless written approval is provided by CCI Greenheart and the student’s natural parents.

11. To possess enough spending money to cover personal expenses while in the host country ($300 - $350 per month is suggested). Students must not lend or borrow personal funds.

12. To abide by all restrictions of the J-1 (exchange visitor) visa, namely: a. students MUST return to their respective countries at the conclusion of the program; b. students who are prematurely dismissed from the program must leave the U.S. immediately (no thirty-day grace period is allowed); c. students may not accept employment, except in non-competitive positions such as baby-sitting, snow shoveling, lawn-mowing, and the like, and must not work even in these kinds of positions more than ten hours per week;

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d. students must abide by the limits of the program as it is described on the DS 2019 form issued to students applying for J-1 visas, namely: I must live with a volunteer host family, attend full-time a U.S. high school, and abide by the sponsor’s program rules.

13. Students agree NOT to change to any other type of visa; students who have been accepted to attend a college or university in the U.S. must nonetheless return to their home countries and apply for appropriate visas before returning to the U.S. 14. Students who choose to bring or purchase high value items such as laptop computers, gaming systems, cell phones, cameras, etc. are responsible for those items at all times.

CCI Greenheart strongly suggests that students insure items prior to their departure and for the duration of their program in the United States. CCI Greenheart assumes no financial responsibility for any items damaged, lost and/or stolen.

15. To accept and abide by the advice and direction of the Local Coordinator, Regional Director/Manager and the CCI Greenheart Chicago Office.

16. To agree not to get body piercings or tattoos while on program.

17. To accept all conditions of the program, including those outlined below.

GREENHEART CLUB PARTICIPATION REQUIREMENT: All CCI Greenheart participants agree to volunteer a ½ day(4 hours) each semester they participate on the program and log their volunteer hours on the Greenheart Club International website.

FAMILY PLACEMENTS: CCI Greenheart reserves the complete right to make host family assignments. Placements are made in all regions of the USA and are not restricted based on any local characteristics, such as regional accents, ethnic character of community, types of industry, economy, weather, etc. The program does not discriminate against host families or participants on the grounds of race, religion, creed, color, sexual orientation or social level in any area of the country. (Note: host families must have sufficient financial resources to host; host families are not permitted to proselytize. All host families are thoroughly screened before they are permitted to receive a student. CCI Greenheart representatives visit families in their own homes, interview personal references, and take other steps to ensure suitability of the host family.) Students may not demand to be placed in specific regions of the U.S. or with hosts of a specific socio economic or ethnic character.

TELEPHONING: It is strongly advised that student telephone-contact with family and friends in their home country or with relatives in the USA be limited to not more than twice per month except in an emergency. Experience has shown that constant communication with natural family and friends in their native countries disrupts and even prevents cultural adaptation and understanding. (Participants must immediately reimburse host families for any long distance calls they make.) Students are encouraged to purchase American pre-paid cell phones to communicate with their host family and American friends. However, especially if the phone has international access,, they understand excessive use may result in limitation of use or confiscation by host family or local coordinator.

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E-MAIL, INTERNET AND INSTANT MESSAGING: Some students have engaged in excessive e-mailing and instant messaging, causing disruption to the adjustment process and daily interaction with the host family. As a general rule, on-line communication should be limited to twice a week for 30 minutes. Internet use should be limited and is left to the discretion of the host family unless it is deemed problematic by the Local Coordinator and/or Regional Director at which time specific limitations will be set. Students are prohibited from viewing internet sites with sexually explicit content, including but not limited to pornography.

Students may not change settings or language on host family’s computers.

COMPUTERS: During the program, students are fully responsible for any computers, laptops or tablets they have purchased or brought. CCI Greenheart reserves the right to limit use and/or remove the computer if used excessively.

SOCIAL MEDIA: Students can use social media throughout the year but must follow the communication limitations - twice a week for 30 minutes - if they are using it to contact family and friends at home and/or are using their native language. Students are encouraged to post in English while using social media sites during their program. In addition, students are not to post derogatory comments about their host families, schools, local coordinators, use profanity or vulgar language and/or post photos of themselves or others engaging in any activities including but not limited to drinking, smoking, or those of a sexually suggestive nature.

VISITS: CCI Greenheart strongly discourages natural parents, family members, or friends from visiting the students. If natural parents do visit, such a visit must occur at the end of the student’s stay in the U.S., and permission must be obtained from CCI Greenheart well in advance of the proposed visit. Permission from CCI Greenheart will not be granted, except in very unusual circumstances, for visits occurring before February 1 for full year students, or before the end of the program for first or second semester students. During visits, student should not miss more than 3 days of school and the visit should be no longer than one week.

Host families are not expected to provide accommodations for visitors in their homes or elsewhere. CCI Greenheart is not responsible for problems that may result from unauthorized visits, and students whose family or friends arrive without CCI Greenheart knowledge and approval are subject to possible program dismissal. In addition, participants may not visit their home countries during their program year unless an immediate family member (parent/guardian, grandparent, or sibling) becomes gravely ill, gravely injured or dies. American holidays must be spent with the participant’s host family. Parents (or anyone else) may not accompany their sons/daughters to the homestay at the onset of the program.

TRAVEL: During the program, participants may travel with their host parents. Any other travel, whether with peers, other participants and/or host families, church groups, adult-supervised school and community groups, or organized travel for exchange students, is permitted only with prior approval of CCI Greenheart, and then only after complete itineraries, including names and addresses of people to be visited, have been submitted as part of the travel request.

Students must leave their host families within 7-10 days of the last day of class for the school year or semester. Independent travel before, during and after the program is prohibited.

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HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA: Many US high schools will not grant diplomas to exchange students. The decision whether to grant a diploma is entirely in the hands of each high school.

School officials determine, after reviewing transcripts, to which class level (10th, 11th or 12th grade) to assign students. Many US high schools assign ALL exchange students to the 11th grade. CCI Greenheart has no control over this decision. Participants must not put pressure on school authorities to grant them diplomas or to change grade levels. All high schools will issue exchange students official transcripts of the courses the students have completed during the school year, including the grades earned, which can, when necessary, be notarized and/or translated (at the student’s effort and expense) to satisfy requirements of the student’s home schools.

INSURANCE: All participants must be covered by illness and accident insurance for the duration of the program. CCI Greenheart offers medical and accident insurance.

FEES: The fee for the Academic Year Program in the United States covers all mandated program expenses from the time of the student’s arrival until the termination of the program in the US. The fee does not cover personal expenses, costs of books and other school activity fees, or the expenses possibly incurred because of premature termination of the student’s program.

Host families are not paid or otherwise financially compensated for their hospitality.

EARLY TERMINATION OF PROGRAM: The sponsoring organization agrees to provide appropriate oral and written warnings to, and probationary periods for, students whose behavior does not meet program expectations. Students who fail to respond appropriately to these warnings may be dismissed from the program.

The sponsoring organization also reserves the right to dismiss any student whose mental or physical health -e.g., eating disorders, depression, or chronic illness or condition--requires this action. The sponsoring organization also reserves the right to dismiss, without a probationary period, and send home any student whose conduct is unlawful, grossly improper or offensive to the host family, community or school. Such conduct includes, but is not limited to: 1) Illegal drug use/use of controlled substances 2) Unacceptable sexual behavior (e.g., having sexual intercourse, becoming pregnant, or arriving in the U.S. pregnant, impregnating another, or sexual harassment of another); in addition, if, after and despite verbal and written warning by CCI Greenheart, the student continues to exhibit an overtly inappropriate public display of physical affection, the student is subject to possible dismissal from the program and repatriation.

3) Driving or purchasing a motor vehicle requiring an operator’s license 4) Drinking of alcoholic beverages 5) Violation of U.S., state, or community law 6) Expulsion from school by school officials 7) Unauthorized travel 8) If, after and despite verbal and written warning by CCI Greenheart, continuation of unsatisfactory school performance, including: a. Two or more suspensions imposed by school officials, whether for misbehavior or lack of academic effort; or b. Two or more failing grades in the same marking period 30

9) Violent behavior or physical attacks of any kind 10) Consistent inability or unwillingness, even after appropriate warnings and probationary periods have been extended, to interact productively and/or amicably with the host family 11) Undergoing a major life-style change (e.g., getting married) 12) Having insufficient funds to cover personal expenses and/or becoming excessively indebted financially to the host family or others 13) During the program, if a student exhibits, over time, irregular or unhealthy eating practices that potentially put his/her health in jeopardy, the student will be required to see a health professional. If an eating disorder is recognized by the health professional or the student continues to exhibit the same irregular or unhealthy eating, the student will be dismissed from the program at that time. Any fees for medical consultations or exams are the responsibility of the student’s natural parents.

14) Experiencing serious health issues that require continued care and monitoring by host family and/or CCI Greenheart staff 15) Or other clear evidence that the student is not capable of, or is unwilling to, participate fully in a cross-cultural environment.

The organization also reserves the right to dismiss any participant who is found to have misrepresented him/herself or provided false information in the program application. In the event that the student is returned home, either alone or accompanied, parents or guardians are responsible for all expenses above those covered by the fee. Refunds are not made to the families of participants whose programs terminate prematurely.

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Appendix B Disciplinary Procedures Typical Challenges It is possible that your student will misbehave. They may disrespect your household rules; violate the CCI Greenheart Conditions of Participation; or, in the worst case, break the law. CCI Greenheart LCs and staff have experience with all kinds of student behavior issues. It is very important that you keep your Local Coordinator informed of any behavioral problems you have with your student.

Common and minor mistakes can and should (at least initially) be managed by the host parents. This includes not respecting, or even just forgetting, host family rules. Some examples are: • Student misses curfew • Student does not tell host parents where they are or what they are doing • Student doesn’t clean up after him/herself • Student spends too little time on homework It is up to you as a host parent to determine consequences (within reason) for these mistakes. It is important to let your Local Coordinator know what you are dealing with, so that they have some history and context if the problems escalate. If your student exhibits the following behavior, we ask that you contact your Local Coordinator right away: • Student spends too much time isolated in his/her bedroom • Student fails to participate in family activities • Student does not communicate or behaves in a sullen manner More serious issues should be addressed with the LC This includes certain violations of CCI Greenheart Conditions of Participation. It also includes minor mistakes that continue after you have addressed the problem with the student. Examples include: • Student continues any behavior they have been asked to stop • Student insults the host family • Student skips school or does not do homework • Student fights with host siblings The LC is expected to communicate regularly with you and to report behavior problems to the CCI Greenheart Chicago Office. Chicago Office staff will communicate problems to the sending partner and natural parents. We ask that you do not personally contact natural parents regarding behavioral issues. When CCI Greenheart Local Coordinators deal with student misbehavior, they first will gather as many facts as possible, speak to students, hosts and anyone else involved. Typically, an LC will talk with each participant individually before bringing everyone together to discuss the problem as a group. If the student needs guidance, the Local Coordinator may decide to issue a verbal instruction to 32

the student on how to modify his or her behavior. If the situation is such that the Local Coordinator feels more stringent initial action is required, she or he will issue a written “warning” to the student.

If the warning does not entirely resolve the problem, the Local Coordinator, in consultation with their supervisor, may elect to place the student on a formal “probation.”

Probation is a more serious disciplinary step than a warning. It is a written document that will include specific reasons for the probation and specific behavioral modification that will be required of the student. Timelines will be established. The document will include reference to possible consequences if the student fails to meet the conditions of the probation.

Examples of behavior that may warrant probation include but are not limited to: • repeated inappropriate behavior • receiving a warning from a teacher or counselor • failure to try to adapt to host family/rules • failure to follow host parent guidance • staying out all night without permission • breaking the law • behavior that is unsafe to the student or to others • poor academic performance CCI Greenheart does not casually dismiss students from the program, but some behavior, when verified to be true, may require such action. Shoplifting, alcohol or illegal drug use, sexual misconduct, driving, behaving violently or unsafely, or breaking other laws may result in program dismissal.

Only the CCI Greenheart Chicago Office will determine whether or not a student will be dismissed from the program and repatriated.

Tell us so we can help Host families must keep their Local Coordinators aware of any problems as those problems begin, even if the hosts elect initially to deal with the problems themselves. Further, it is unfair to the student, the student’s natural parents, and to the organization to wait until a situation has grown to be untenable before alerting the Local Coordinator to the problem. Hosts also may contact the LC’s supervisor for assistance.

To end this section on a positive note, it is equally important to note that although most students and hosts will experience an adjustment problem, those problems are almost always resolved positively. Many of our former hosts and students have reported that encountering and successfully dealing with their own adjustment problems represented a major portion of the “learning experience.”

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Appendix C Student Moves Sometimes adjustment problems are significant enough that a host family change is warranted. Host changes are not made casually. Every effort should be made to resolve adjustment problems. However, there are instances when the match between specific students and hosts simply does not work out. Hosts and students will feel disappointed that the experience did not progress as hoped, but neither host families nor students should feel as though they have failed.

Your Local Coordinator will explore different avenues before moving the student to a new home. This will likely include sitting down with both the student and your family to discuss the situation and see if the issues can be resolved. However, it is not productive for the host or student to have to endure a program year where either feels unduly uncomfortable.

Moves can become necessary for a wide variety of reasons, including personal incompatibility, adjustment issues, and host family changes or emergencies. The LC first will try to locate a new host in the same school district, so that the student does not have to change schools as well. Under some circumstances, though, the student will be moved to an entirely new community. If you request that your student be removed from your home, please allow 1-2 weeks for your LC to locate and screen a new host family.

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Appendix D Fair Trade at the Greenheart Shop

What if you could change the world by shopping? Greenheart believes consumers have the power to affect positive world change by supporting sustainable and fair business practices in their purchasing choices.

The Greenheart Shop is Greenheart’s eco-fair trade division, carrying products made by artisans from around the world. “Fair Trade� supports sustainable community development by ensuring that the artisans making the products are paid fair living wages. "Eco" signifies that our products are made using the most sustainable materials and methods whenever possible.

The purchase of these products improves the lives of real people and the products are made by establishments that take care of our Earth.

Learn more about the Greenheart Shop at:

www.greenheartshop.org

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Appendix E Travel Abroad Scholarships with Greenheart Travel

Greenheart Travel provides cultural immersion programs for English speakers that change lives, advance careers, and create leaders.

As CCI Greenheart Host Families, you can receive the following off any Greenheart Travel program fee: CCI Greenheart Host Families that host for less than one full semester:

• $100 discount only on Greenheart Travel Short term programs (Volunteer, Independent Homestay, Language School, Language Exchange Homestay).

• $300 discount on High School Abroad programs

CCI Greenheart Host Families that host for one full semester or more:

• $200 discount only on Greenheart Travel Short term programs (Volunteer, Independent Homestay, Language School, Language Exchange Homestay).

• $600 discount on High School Abroad programs

Note: Programs must start within 12 months of the last date the host family served as a host to a CCI Greenheart participant.

Learn more about Greenheart Travel opportunities on the website:

www.greenhearttravel.org

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Travel for a Change Greenheart Travel is the travel abroad division of Greenheart. We are personally invested in providing cultural exchange programs that change lives, advance careers and create leaders. While anyone can travel abroad, Greenheart Travel is the only cultural exchange organization that allows students to give back to their host community and earn community service hours abroad while becoming global citizens. Contact us to learn more about discounts for host families and how you can get involved!

High School Abroad (Ages 15–18)

Make your textbooks come alive! Choose from 18 destinations in Europe, South America and Asia to spend a trimester, semester or year of high school abroad.

Studying abroad in High school makes you stand out on college applications, increases maturity, builds global perspectives and gives you the adventure of a lifetime.

Experience 100% immersion abroad.

Summer Language Camps (Ages 14+)

Spend 1– 4 weeks studying a language through intensive coursework and cultural activities or by participating in an authentic homestay, sharing meals and making life-long friendships.

Volunteer Abroad (Ages 16+) Take action and help developing communities get empowered. Spend 2–12 weeks volunteering with a meaningful service project in countries spanning the Americas, Africa and Southeast Asia.

Teach Abroad (Ages 21+)

Get paid to travel! Teach English as a second language in countries around the world and gain valuable international work experience as you enhance your resume and travel the world!

www.greenhearttravel.org

a division of Greenheart International

J-1 High School Program 712 N. Wells Street 3rd Floor Chicago, IL 60654 Toll free: 800.634.4771 Fax: 312.944.0713 Email: ayp@ccigreenheart.org www.ccigreenheart.org Since 1985, CCI Greenheart has offered cultural exchange programs in the U.S. that connect Americans with international students. As the leading nonprofit cultural exchange sponsor that blends service learning and volunteerism into all of our programs, we are effectively creating a community of compassionate and conscious global citizens.

CCI Greenheart is a Division of Greenheart International

CCI Greenheart is one of six branches of Greenheart International, a global nonprofit organization headquartered in Chicago, IL committed to connecting people and planet to create a more peaceful and sustainable global community.

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Emergency Contact Information — CCI Greenheart

LOCAL COORDINATOR NAME

TELEPHONE NUMBER EMAIL ADDRESS

AREA COORDINATOR/REGIONAL MANAGER NAME

TELEPHONE NUMBER EMAIL ADDRESS

REGIONAL DIRECTOR NAME

TELEPHONE NUMBER EMAIL ADDRESS

When emergencies occur, you should try to contact your Local Coordinator. (You, he or she should write the telephone number and e-mail address above.) If your Local Coordinator is not available, the Area Coordinator’s, Regional Manager’s or Regional Director’s telephone is your second option.

If none of the above is available, the CCI Greenheart telephone number is: 1.800.634.4771 (toll-free from within the U.S.).

At night, during holidays and on weekends, the CCI Greenheart’s emergency service telephone numbers are: 1.888.301.9868 (toll-free from within the U.S.) and 1.708.237.6129.