Draft school policy

From AFSWiki

Drafting a School Policy for a Small High School

AFS volunteers know that schools that do not have a set policy sometimes wind up hosting students on programs do not meet the US State Department and CSIET Guidelines. It is very difficult to place students or offer sending programs to students with an unclear set of rules to follow.

In many cases poor communication between the program and the school leads to all programs at the school being grouped together and those that do what is expected are losing hosting and sending preference. The case below is still on going and what I have tried to do is lead you through step by step when approaching a school where no policy exists.

Contact the school principal or counselor involved in the hosting process. Identify yourself and that you are a volunteer for AFS. What you do need to stress is that you are offering a service, not promoting AFS and that you hope your expertise can be use to help in a policy that will serve the school district.

Sample Letter

Dear Mr. F...,

Last winter Leslie introduced me to you when we had our AFS students at the pool. At that time I volunteered to help you write a policy for the school for how you accept foreign exchange students. I am going to be in M... the week of the 8th of May and would be happy to come in and talk with you and give you suggestions for drafting a policy and then write it for you for your Boards approval. There are so many programs that are out there that do not follow US State Department Guidelines for Exchange Programs nor the CSIET regulations for programs. Schools that do not have a firm policy find themselves in the same position that you did when a representative arrived at your school last August with 6 students with no homes and you felt sorry for the students and managed to place them for the representative.

If you need to check with someone you are welcome to call Mrs. R..., vice principal at B… High School. I helped Carolyn and the District Committee write policy a few years ago and also wrote Exchange Guidelines for the Idaho Department of Education 5 years ago. I am in the process of revising the state’s guidelines to be used within the state and nationally at this time and would be happy to share this with you.

Please call or e-mail me at your convienance and we can set a time or a different date that will work best for you.

HLB
AFS Volunteer Coordinator
Phone:
Cell:
E-mail:

• Once your appointment is set you must go prepared. A little research into the past hosting and sending numbers is necessary. You should also find out what programs have been present in the school for the past 3 years. In small schools with no knowledge of regulations many unusual programs might be on the list. The registrar or secretary at the school will be very helpful. Try to get on a first name basis with her.
• Small schools are eager to host, especially in states where schools are paid per student based on fall attendance numbers. When schools are being faced with large budget cuts because of the economy this extra money allows them to continue some programs that might have had to be cut.
• Put together a sample of district policies for hosting and sending in your state and other areas if you have access. If you go to local school district web sites these policies are usually there. If not, and you do not have copies in your or your hosting coordinators records call local districst or schools and ask for a copy of the policy. Have a fax number to give the school or district. You are more likely to get a copy with a fax than to ask them to put it in the mail to you.

Sample policies are very important. You must have something to show the administrator what others are doing within the state. Ideally you want a sample policy that stresses VOLUNTEER BASED PROGRAMS, for example, the CSIET Model School Policy. [1]

• Take a copy of the CSIET booklet with you for the administrator or be prepared to show the link to their website [2]. Many times they are totally surprised that there actually is an agency that monitors programs.
• Bring a list of schools and contacts that you have really good working relationships with in both hosting and sending. You want to show credibility.
• Once you have gone over objectives for the exchange policy take your notes and in a very timely manner write a policy for the school or district. This can be done with an e-mail exchange and phone calls to the administrator. Once the administrator approves the policy make sure that you know what the Board approval process is and if the policy needs School Board approval ask the administrator if he or she would want you there to answer questions placed by the Board. If you are not present ask that you be given notice if the policy is approved or if further adjustments need to be made.
• Make a personal follow up call on the administrator. You might want to take a small AFS logo item as a thank you for allowing you to help. At this time, present all the AFS materials available to schools and make the connection that you would like to host at the school, following the new guidelines, and also present sending options to students in the fall of the school year.