Department of State October 27, 2010 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Department is revising existing Secondary School Student regulations regarding the screening, selection, school enrollment, orientation, and quality assurance monitoring of exchange students as well as the screening, selection, orientation, and quality assurance monitoring of host families and field staff. Further, the Department is adopting a new requirement regarding training for all organizational representatives who place and/or monitor students with host families. The proposed requirement to conduct FBI fingerprint-based criminal background checks will not be implemented at this time. Rather, it will continue to be examined and a subsequent Final Rule regarding this provision will be forthcoming. These regulations, as revised, govern the Department designated exchange visitor programs under which foreign secondary school students (ages 15-18\1/2\) are afforded the opportunity to study in the United States at accredited public or private secondary schools for an academic semester or year while living with American host families or residing at accredited U.S. boarding schools.