Frequently Asked Questions
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filed under:
Exchange Resources
Tools, tips and resources for making international exchange happen for students with disabilities.
"I have been amazed at the outpouring of care and commitment from my
community and friends. It seems that someone, somewhere knows exactly
where to find exactly what Kawthar needs." Donna Morganti, AYUSA youth
exchange staff on Lebanese student with a vision disability. Read her story here.
The following are tips on making inclusion work for your exchange programs. Whether the students have vision, hearing, learning, cognitive, systemic, speech, mental health or physical disabilities, Mobility International USA can answer questions staff may have.
- How do I know our website materials are accessible?
- What should I know about foreign exchange students with disabilities placed at high schools in the United States?
- Are exchange students with disabilities covered by U.S. special education laws while in the United States on an exchange program?
- Do you have forms that we could use to assess the student's disability needs?
- How do I know what assistive technology to get for a blind or low vision international student?
- What about disability organizations in the United States for enrichment & community activities for foreign exchange students? (Also use "Search Disability Organizations" in the sidebar)
- Where can I find out about disability organizations in the host country in order to do outreach and recruitment?
- If the program requires English language learning, then what works best for students with learning disabilities, visual impairments or who are deaf?
- What is the best strategy for finding a homestay family for a participant with a disability?
- How do I work with our overseas exchange partners to get them on board with recruiting students with disabilities?
- If I've never had a student with a disability come on our program, who can I have them speak with to answer some disability-related questions they have?
- What should I do about a parent wanting to come on the program?
- What if the parent provides attendant care?
- What will it cost us to provide disability-related accommodations?
- How can we prepare for funding this in the future?
- Is health insurance different for participants with disabilities?
- What are the safety, legal and liability concerns I should be aware of?
- What if the student uses a wheelchair and wants to come to the U.S.? Have other students done this?
- Do you have a quick reference guide for staff to get answers to other questions?
- What resources do you have so our staff can become more knowledgeable on the topic of people with disabilities traveling abroad?
Are there other questions that haven't been answered on the website?
Also the National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange's Information and Referral Services provide technical assistance.
Also read this article published on placing a blind student from Russia in a U.S. community.
