Welcome, Bienvenidos

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www.amigoslink.org

• Welcome, Bienvenidos!

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Mission Statement

• Amigos de las Américas (AMIGOS) builds
  partnerships to
• empower young leaders,
• advance community development and
• strengthen multicultural understanding in the
  Americas

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About AMIGOS

• Founded in 1965
• 30 chapters across the United States
• 800 high school and college-age Volunteers each
  year
• 20,000 Volunteers during the past 43 years

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2008 Highlights

• 800 Volunteers and Project Staff
• 300 Host communities
• Seven Latin American countries
• 3,000 trees planted
• 5,000 hours of educational workshops
• 600 environmental improvement efforts

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What do Volunteers do?

• Sustainable public health, environmental, womens
  empowerment and education projects
• Teams of 2-3 Volunteers live and work in rural
  and semi-rural communities
• They partner with community members
• Project focus is unique to the country and
  project area. Projects include
• Dental and hygiene education
• Latrine and fuel-efficient stove construction
• Environmental conservation and education projects

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Youth Leadership In Action

• What do Volunteers gain?
• First-hand community development experience
• Improved public-speaking and leadership abilities
  
• Experience in project design and implementation
• Cultural awareness
• Improved Spanish language abilities
• Opportunity to return on Project Staff to lead
  summer projects

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Cross-Cultural Understanding

• Experience a culture like never before
• Live with a host family
• Collaborate with community members and partner
  agencies
• Expose yourself to new foods and customs

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2007 Volunteer Experience Survey Results

• 97 rated their experience as good or excellent
• 94 noted an increase in their Spanish skills
• 82 reported an increased sense of self-esteem
• 87 noted growth in personal confidence and
  communication abilities
• 91 reported improvement in their ability to
  plan, implement and evaluate projects
• 90 noted increased leadership skills
• 89 reported improved problem-solving abilities

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Partner Agencies
Mexico Desarrollo Integral de la
Familia Secretaría de Educación de
Guanajuato Secretaría de Salud de
Guanajuato Secretaria de Salud de
Michoacán Puente a la Salud Comunitaria Un Kilo
de Ayuda Centro de Tecnología del Instituto
Estatal de Educación Publica de Oaxaca
Nicaragua Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y
Deportes de Nicaragua Ministerio de Salud de
Nicaragua Plan Nicaragua Paraguay Fundación
Paraguaya/Junior Achievement Plan Paraguay SENASA
Dominican Republic Plan Dominican Republic Costa
Rica Casa de la Juventud National Parks of Costa
Rica Honduras Plan Honduras Panama Ministerio
de Salud de Panamá Panamá Verde
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Volunteer Training

• How do you prepare
• for the AMIGOS experience?
• Training Sessions
• Service work prior to departure
• Online training requirements

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Health Safety

• Standards of Personal and Community Conduct
• Extensive Volunteer preparation and training
• 24/7 On-call communication system
• Health insurance requirements
• Chapter summer communication representatives
• In-country emergency plan for each community

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Participation Fee

• The cost is not yet fixed, but will be under
  5000
• The Marin Chapter
• Helps you with fundraising
• Offers financial aid packages
• Spreads payments of around 200 over 10 months
• What does the participation fee cover?
• Training materials and workshops
• Round-trip international airfare from your
  gateway city
• Food, lodging, and transportation in Latin
  America
• All project related supplies
• 24-hour emergency On-Call Communications System
  during the program
• Supplemental short-term international medical
  insurance
• All training expenses, retreats, and domestic air
  fare

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Participation Fee

• How is the fee to the International Office used?
• More than 80 percent of all AMIGOS expenditures
  are devoted to program development in Latin
  America
• AMIGOS fundraises to keep the participation fee
  as low as possible
• Volunteers pay less to participate than the
  actual cost of their projects

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Participation Fee

• How does AMIGOS help?
• Scholarships
• Need-based financial assistance
• Fundraising guidance

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Recognitions and Honors

• AMIGOS has had a memorandum of understanding with
  the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) since
  1977
• AMIGOS is one of 12 programs with full membership
  in the International Volunteer Programs
  Association (IVPA)
• AMIGOS was among the first 19 programs accepted
  for listing by the Council on Standards for
  International Educational travel (CSIET)
• AMIGOS is recognized by the Better Business
  Bureau

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• Press Coverage
• AMIGOS has been featured in more than 300
  publications and broadcasts, including

AMIGOS provides international volunteer service
opportunities for collaboration with Latin
American communities on sustainable health and
environmental improvement projects. Private
Colleges and Universities
Unlike many other volunteer programs, AMIGOS
volunteers get a full immersion experience
because they stay with Spanish-speaking host
families. Language Magazine
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Apply now!

• You must be 16 years old by September 1, 2009
• You must have 2 years of Spanish or the
  equivalent
• Marin Chapter recruiting coordinator, Rishi
  Schweig 415-663-8226
• Learn more
• AmigosMarin.org for more recruiting information
  and video
• www.amigoslink.org

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Still have questions?

• Attend a presentation at your high school
• Come to our orientation at Drake High School,
  September 30 at 7PM to 8PM
• Call the Marin Recruiting Coordinator
• Rishi Schweig415-663-8226AmigosMarin.org

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www.amigoslink.org