It can be helpful for many people to be able to plan ahead for their work as a volunteer. For others, it can be helpful to have a visual reminder of what’s expected of them in their volunteer role. The School Outreach Staff and Advisory Group have put together a Communications Calendar for all volunteers to use to help them prepare for positive school interactions.
Option 1- We suggest that you access or download the full calendar by clicking HERE. You can save it to the desktop of your computer, or you can create calendar reminders for action items and put the calendar in each of those so the links are handy.
Option 2- For those of you who are more comfortable having a printed version, you are welcome to print the calendar, but please remember that the links to register for online events are found in the digital version and in this article.
Here’s what you do with this helpful resource:
Each month you will see if there is an overarching theme for any given month that can apply to schools or education. For example, September is Hispanic Heritage Month, October is National Principal’s Month, and November includes International Education Week. Moreover, February is Black History Month, March is National Foreign Language Month, May include Teacher Appreciation Week, and June is PRIDE Month.
On the calendar you will also see a series of symbols indicating a important dates and events. Please see below to learn what each symbol indicates.
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Live Webinar – This is an indicator of an event that you can and should invite applicable educators to attend. For example, in August & September 2022, four “Welcoming International Students to School” webinars are scheduled to help school staff that are new to a role at the school where they are now expected to handle student exchange or school staff from a school that has never hosted an exchange student. |
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Student Arrivals/Departures– A best practice from any local volunteer (Liaison, AFS School Representative, Hosting Coordinator, etc…) is to thank the school for inviting a student to be part of their school community and sharing resources that will help everyone have a successful start. This calendar indicates both the first and second wave of arrivals along with a note and email template to send a welcome message to the school. |
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Share – This symbol is there to encourage you to take action in sharing a message or reminder with schools. For example, in August and September, this message is to thank a school for inviting a student to their building and share some resources for the educators who will support students so everyone has a strong start to the year. Be sure to use the linked templates provided for guidance. |
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Global Educator Newsletter – This indicator shows you when the next newsletter will be sent electronically from AFS-USA staff to educators who have opted to receive it. To determine if an educator receives the newsletter, please refer to Global Educator Newsletter article. |
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Training – This symbol is there to encourage you to come learn with AFS-USA. For example, the School Outreach training in the 2022-2023 academic year will include the latest changes to the Schools widget of MyAFS, new resources that have been developed, and recent and upcoming school outreach initiatives. Every training will allow for questions about engaging with schools! |
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Reminders or Due Dates – These symbols represent various School Outreach and School related reminders or deadlines. For example, when the Global Award Nominations and Applications are due or a reminder for volunteers to complete their hosted students school contact three times per year. |
The calendar will be updated twice per year to give volunteers a chance to look and plan ahead for their school outreach efforts!