A
Affiliation - Affiliations are used in Global Link to indicate roles/tasks a volunteer has agreed to do. They also give an individual access to specific parts of Global Link or may trigger auto emails to help the volunteer complete tasks they have agreed to do. An affiliation is considered "Active" if the person is still doing the task and is made "Inactive" when the role/task ends or when volunteer registration or any required training lapses.
G
Gateway - The name of the city where a student enters or departs the U.S. for an AFS program. Hosting gateways include Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, and Seattle, and Sending gateways include Miami, New York, and Los Angeles.
Global Link - A database of people and schools used by AFS-USA staff and volunteers. Our goal is for volunteers to be able to access any data they need via MyAFS rather than needing to use Global Link because it is complex and not user friendly.
H
Hostfam or host family - Anyone who is hosting or has hosted an AFS student or teacher in their home.
I
IOC - International Olympic Code. Used to track our international partners. See more about the codes under country codes.
N
Natfam or natural family - A participant's family in their home country.
P
Partner Country - Any of the individual countries within the AFS International Network. A list of countries can be found under country codes.
Program Code - An eight-character code such as YPscNH18 that gives information about a participant’s exchange. Program codes are defined more thoroughly in the Global Link tutorial Interpreting the Service Case Search.
R
Returnee - A person of any age who once participated on an AFS sending program. People outside of the AFS Community would refer to Returnees as "Alumni."
Reverse Returnee - A person who came to the U.S. as an AFS Exchange Student and lives here now.
S
Service Case - A Service Case defines a person's AFS interest/activity. There are four types of Service Cases: Host Family, Hosted Participant, Participant, and Volunteering. Learn more by going to Interpreting the Service Case Search.
Sponsored Programs or SP - An inbound (hosting) or outbound (sending) program that is funding through a U.S. Government Grant. These programs include the Youth Exchange and Study (YES) Program, the Congress-Bundestag (CB) Program, and the National Strategic Language Institute for Youth (NSLI-Y) among others.
T
Team Development Specialist or TDS - A full time staff person assigned to a volunteer team (or cluster of small contiguous volunteer teams) as the primary staff contact for hosting, sending, and volunteer development. Working in close collaboration with the volunteer leadership for his or her team(s), the TDS develops new and existing volunteers in order to ensure that the team goals for hosting and sending can be met in compliance and with quality. The ultimate goal of the TDS is to strengthen the volunteer team(s) with whom s/he works in order to position them for sustainable program growth in the future. One way that TDS strengthen their teams is by assisting them to work more efficiently and effectively across the many different departments within AFS USA and better utilize the many tools and resources that the organization makes available. To succeed, the TDS will need to become an integral part of the team(s) with which they work and ultimately share equally with volunteers the responsibility and accountability required for the success of the team and the AFS program. You can find the name of your TDS in the Team Directory.