The same process is used to enter many different kinds of requests as defined below. If you are unable to enter a request, please ask a volunteer leader or your Regional Field Specialist (RFS) to give you the appropriate affiliation, "Hosting Volunteer." Detailed instructions to enter requests are found in the document How to Enter Requests on Global Link.
Nationally Available or Regionally Available
These statuses are used to denote that a family has not been identified for a specific student yet. Nationally Available students are available to go to any team in the country. Regionally Available students are available to be placed in any team in a designated region.
Area Team Hold / Family Hold
Area Team Hold and Family Hold requests are used to set aside a specific student for a specific family to consider over the course of three days. To learn more about Holds, please read Placing a Student on Hold.
Area Team Holds are used for students who are Regionally or Nationally Available. Family Holds are used for students who are Area Team Available.
If you have a student on Hold for a family, and the family decides they are not interested in that specific student, please enter a "Release AT Hold" or "Release Family Hold" request so that staff can release the student for other families to consider.
School Placed
Sometimes schools are willing to accept students even if a host family hasn't been identified yet. This can be a great strategy for securing school spots. Some schools will even help promote the student or identify families for us. To learn more about securing a student for a specific school, please read Placing Students Directly in Schools.
Placed without Papers (PWP)
When a family commits to hosting a particular student, a Placed without Papers request is entered into Global Link. Volunteers with the affiliation "Hosting Volunteer" can make this request in Global Link using the instructions found here. The student will remain in this status until all approvals and paperwork are completed at which time AFS staff will move the student to Family Placement Confirm (FPC). You can learn more about this status by reading Placing a Student with a Family.