In-Home Visit FAQs
From AFSWiki
Background
Department of State Regulation
(d) Program administration. (12) That a sponsor representative other than the local coordinator who recruited, screened and selected the host family visit the exchange student/home family home within the first or second month following the student’s placement in the home.
Department of State Guidance Directive 10-07
“The Department interprets ‘within the first… month’ to mean within 30 days after the student has joined the host family; and it interprets ‘within the second… month’ to mean within 60 days after the student has joined the host family. Sponsors must conduct follow-up home visits to all homes designated as ‘temporary’, ‘welcome’, or ‘arrival’ homes on the Placement Report (that sponsors are required to file pursuant to 22 CFR 62.25 (n) (3)) within 30 days after the student moved into the home. In the unlikely event that a permanent home is not shortly found for the student, the sponsor must conduct a second follow-up home visit within 30 days following the first visit.
This provision does not require the ‘sponsor representative’ to be a vetted employee. However, if the sponsor wishes to include this visit as one of the required monthly personal contacts with the student, then the visit must be conducted by a sponsor representative who has been vetted by a criminal background check within the past year (pursuant to new 22 CFR 62.25 (d) (3)), has been trained in the topics identified in new 22 CFR 62.25 (d) (1), and who otherwise meets the sponsor’s and Department’s requirements to act in the capacity of a local coordinator.”
FAQs
1. Within how many days must Permanent homes be visited?
A Permanent home must be visited within 60 days of a student’s arrival to that home.
2. Do Permanent homes need to be visited more than once?
No, only one in-home visit is required for a Permanent home. However, additional in-home visits may be needed if support issues arise.
3. Within how many days must Welcome and Temporary homes be visited?
A Welcome or Temporary home must be visited within 30 days of a student’s arrival to that home.
4. Do Welcome and Temporary homes need to be visited more than once?
Yes, a Welcome or Temporary home must be visited every 30 days that the student remains in that home. For example, if a student arrives August 15th to a Welcome placement and moves October 20th to a Permanent placement, an in-home visit to the Welcome placement must occur at some point from August 15th – September 15th and again from September 15th – October 15th. Then, an in-home visit to the Permanent placement must occur within 60 days of October 20th.
5. Does a home need to be visited if the student is placed in the home for less than 30 days (i.e. a two week transition placement)?
No. If the student resides in the home for less than 30 days, the home does not need to be visited.
6. Can a liaison conduct the in-home visit(s)?
Yes, a liaison can conduct the in-home visit(s) as long as s/he is NOT the volunteer who conducted the host family’s interview. It is acceptable for the volunteer who conducted the host family’s interview to be assigned as the student and host family’s liaison; just keep in mind that an alternate volunteer will need to complete the in-home visit(s).
7. Who else can conduct the in-home visit(s)?
Any AFS staff and registered volunteers that have completed the Hosting and Support Affiliations training (HSA) and the Department of State Local Coordinator certification (DoS) can conduct the in-home visit(s).
8. Does the staff or volunteer conducting the in-home visit(s) need to live within 120 miles of the student and host family’s home?
No. While the Department of State requires that all students and host families live within 120 miles of a “local coordinator” (d) (5), which AFS fulfills by assigning liaisons that live within 120 miles of the students and host families’ home, the Department of State does not specify that the “sponsor representative” conducting the in-home visit must live within 120 miles, only that the “sponsor representative” needs to have completed a Criminal Background Check and the required trainings mentioned above.
9. What happens when a student moves?
If a student moves to a Permanent home, the new home will need to be visited within 60 days of the student moving into that home. If a student moves to a Temporary home, the new home will need to be visited within 30 days of the student moving into that home and again within 30 days after the first visit if a Permanent home has not yet been found.
10. Can an in-home visit be considered a student and/or host family monthly contact also?
Yes, if the volunteer speaks with the student and/or host family privately while visiting their home, the visit can also serve as the monthly contact with the student and/or host family.
