Being a Local Rep involves finding host families of all sizes that are willing to host high school students from around the world. The host family does not pay anything to host the student, but the family is required to allow them to attend a local school, house the students within regulated living conditions, and feed the child meals while the student is in the home. Local Representatives place the students within a home and monitor their well-being during their stay (usually about 10 months).
Representatives are paid per each student placement in a home, as well as for each student orientation after the student arrival. For each month following the student's arrival, until the completion of the student's program, the Rep will be paid for monthly supervision.
Compensation may vary depending on each individual Local Representative Agreement signed by the new Representative.
Hosting a foreign exchange student is like bringing the world right into your house! You will not only share your home and heart for one year, but you will gain a new daughter/son, sister/brother, or friend for your family - possibly for life! The experience will give you a new global perspective and will connect you to the world we live in. It's fun learning about other cultures and customs right in your home.
By hosting a student, you not only enrich your family life, but you make a dream come true for a student from a different country!
Regardless of if you have children or not, you can become a loving and supportive host family for an international student. As a host family, you accept a new member into your family and treat the student like one of your own children.
You are expected to provide meals and a bed for them (not necessarily their own room), provide transportation to and from school (either bus or car), and give them a taste of the American culture through your family's experiences.
The students bring their own spending money for everything that exceeds family meals and transportation, such as school lunches, after school activities, clothes, movies etc.
INTER-ED is happy to welcome you as a participant in our Academic Year Program. Our objective is to foster goodwill and international understanding through positive homestay experiences. The focal point of INTER-ED's philosophy is for students and families to learn about each other by living together. For centuries, the family unit has been the foundation of basic learning. Although formal learning in an educational institution is a vital part of the program, the essence of the program will be learned within the foundation of the family unit.
You are encouraged to become a part of your community. Take an interest in what is going on around you and learn about its citizens, groups, government, and livelihood. Let the community learn about you and your country - you are here to learn by doing! When you have adjusted to this lifestyle, you have become a goodwill ambassador.
During your stay, you are responsible for the costs of school fees, movies, personal items, CDs, postage, film, bus fare, gifts, activities, snacks, long distance telephone bills, etc.
There is a 5 month stay (Academic Semester) and a 10 month stay (Academic Year).