North American Youth Exchange Network Inc

NAYEN operates to facilitate, educate, market and promote policy development regarding international youth exchange. NAYEN is part of Rotary International Inc., a worldwide organization under IRC section 501c3 in North America. Rotary Youth Exchange supports youth exchange program for students up to age 19. NAYEN typically has one annual meeting each year. The conference location is rotated annually among cities in the USA, Canada, and Mexico. All the participants are professional businessmen and women who work as unpaid volunteers engaged in administering, directing, and improving the exchange program for the purpose of promoting international peace, cooperation and understanding among the youth of the world. During the annual conference, presentations are made by Rotarians and outside speakers from organizations such as the US Department of state, Council on Standards for International Educational Travel CSIET, Rotary International, etc. The topics include, but are not limited to, information on child protection and sexual abuse guidelines, selecting host families and counselors, inbound/outbound student orientation, visa and passport regulations and requirements, interviews and selection procedures, summer camps, language preparation and translation, developing cultural sensitivity, administering the required national and international forms and documents, etc. In additional to the annual conference, the NAYEN board comprised of the officers and directors from the various geographic rotary zones located in North America meets via internet conference and at the annual conference quarterly and the entire membership has access to an electronic format via the internet YEO Talk and YEO Resources, which offers the opportunity to view and discuss training needs 60, policy updated 20 and administrative procedures 20 on a daily basis. In order to meet its goals NAYENs activities include the following develop and publish best practices for the implementation of youth exchange in the USA, Canada, and Mexico, provide interactive e-tools for communication and collaboration, provide a North American Rotary youth exchange website for interested youth, provide a North American rotary youth exchange website for officers, directors, and other interest parties www.yeoresources.org, develop mentoring teams to work one-on-one with district Youth Exchange Officers who want to pioneer or grow a program, recognize top performing districts, facilitate the recruitment of exchange alumni into Rotary, provide national training as required, facilitate the launch of new exchange models publish a monthly rotary youth exchange e-bulletin, be an advocate to the Rotary International board of directors, collaborate with regional Rotary youth exchange entities throughout the world.