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, Dallas, Seattle, Washington DC, and Minneapolis. Sending gateways include Miami, New York, and Los Angeles.
Global Link - A database of people and schools used by AFS-USA staff and volunteers.
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.