Confidential for Internal Use Only By AFS-USA Volunteers. Please do not forward or share.
The following communication is being sent to all AFS-USA Volunteers. If you have any questions, please email president@afsusa.org.
Dear AFS-USA Volunteers,
Information regarding COVID-19 (coronavirus) is constantly in front of us all and is coming from many different perspectives. We are sending this communication to help answer some of the questions you may have surrounding AFS programs and plans, as together we monitor this evolving situation.
AFS-USA staff are monitoring all relevant official sources of information constantly and we will follow all recommended steps by the CDC and other government officials to facilitate the welfare of AFS participants, our host families, sending families, and volunteers. We are monitoring media on an ongoing basis. We have a system for ‘social listening,’ and are tracking questions and comments that we receive.
We can report that as of today, AFS-USA staff have received very few questions or concerns either by phone or in writing from schools, parents of students abroad or host parents, potential parents, current participants or prospective participants. We are not experiencing any unusual activity in terms of withdrawals from programs at this time. Our hosting applications and our sending applications are currently on track, as compared to previous years, at this time.
Of huge benefit to AFS in situations like these is the fact that we have more than seven decades of experience dealing with all kinds of situations throughout the world. We have a worldwide network of AFS Partners and staff in offices where we send our students and host our students from, and volunteers ‘on the ground’ in communities where our students live. We are in constant contact with our AFS Network Partner Offices as well as AFS International and, together, we are following protocol and procedures. At this time, we have also made the decision to have access, if needed, to a highly regarded communication firm who has worked with AFS in many situations through many years.
Together, we are navigating and responding appropriately to this situation that will no doubt continue to change.
At this moment in time, there are no changes in program operations in the U.S. that impact any of our on-program participants, host families, or volunteers. This may change depending on circumstances and new developments. There are also no plans to significantly alter the current programs of our students in the U.S. or abroad at this time. Should the situation develop in such a way that it alters any program, we will inform you, as well as our host and natural parents.
Rest assured, we will communicate directly to you regarding new instructions or updates impacting on-program participants, their host families, and sending families as circumstances dictate.
Here are links to two sites that you can monitor and trust for the most recent, accurate information:
CDC site:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/summary.html
WHO site:
https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
The following are talking points that may be helpful to you when preparing to speak with school officials or others.
Overview:
In the current and future sending/hosting cycles, you are likely to receive questions regarding how AFS is handling the COVID-19 (coronavirus) situation in the U.S. and/or abroad. How schools are handling their student/parent communications varies from school to school. For example, one high school announced today that it is requiring that new international students arrive through a specific entry point where a nurse will ask the students questions regarding exposure to the coronavirus.
It is not possible to know what the policies will be for every school you work with or will approach. As the novel coronavirus continues to spread, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has urged every school to have response plans in place, which could be something as simple as hypervigilant cleanliness procedures.
Here are tips to help you in your conversations:
- Before going to visit a school, check the school’s website online for recent postings on the coronavirus. This will give you a sense of what the school’s position and recommendations are within the parent/student community and what the school may be dealing with already (often based on where the school is located, the size of the school, the demographics, etc.). Schools are responding differently to their parents and students and you are likely to find good information on the school’s website.
- The best source of comfort to schools and to parents that AFS can provide is for them to know that:
- AFS is a worldwide network that has AFS Partner Offices and staff in countries where we host and send our students, and trained volunteers ‘on the ground’ where students live;
- Schools who partner with AFS-USA have a volunteer contact who is trained to respond to all kinds of situations. AFS-USA has a volunteer network in the U.S. of nearly 5,000 trained volunteers, all of whom are community-based;
- AFS has operated programs since 1947 through all kinds of situations in the world, has staff devoted to safety, compliance and risk management, and has an experienced crisis management team in place at all times.
- The best source of comfort to schools and to parents that AFS can provide is for them to know that:
- AFS staff monitor the coronavirus situation on a continual basis and work with AFS International and our AFS Partners abroad. Together, we monitor all relevant official sources of information constantly.
- AFS follows all recommended steps by the CDC and other government officials to facilitate the welfare of AFS participants, our host families, sending families, and volunteers.
- If changes become necessary, AFS-USA is experienced and well-prepared. Most recently, and without incident, AFS successfully ended programs early for more than a hundred students from around the world who were studying in China.
- At this moment in time, there are no other changes in program operations in the U.S. that impact any of our on-program participants, host families, or volunteers. There are also no plans to significantly alter the current programs of our students in the U.S. or abroad at this time.
- Should the situation develop in such a way that it alters any program, we will inform you, as well as our host and natural parents.
- Rest assured that we will communicate directly with instructions or updates impacting on-program participants, their host families, and sending families as circumstances warrant.
What if you don’t have ‘the answer?’
If you receive a question for which you do not have the answer, the response should be that you do not have the answer and will follow up and get back to the (principal, parent, etc.). It is okay to not have all the answers, especially as this is an ever-changing situation. There is also information stated as fact that is untrue. People would rather wait for a concrete, fact-based response than receive a vague one.
Once again, if you have specific questions or concerns, please feel free to email me at president@afsusa.org.
Thank you for all that you continue to do to ensure that our participants have a safe and life-changing exchange experience.
Warmest regards,
Tara M. Hofmann
President & CEO
AFS-USA, Inc.