Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, committee members will visit the prospective host family for an interview and every adult in the household has to submit to a background check.

Some of the visiting teens were hosts the year before and will likely stay with the family of the student they hosted. Otherwise, teens are matched up by gender, age, and interests. Note that there have been years with a very unbalanced gender distribution and some of the matches were mixed boy-girl; we have never had an issue with this.

Unfortunately, no financial support is available for hosting the visiting teen.

Yes, host families will often plan trips to other cities, to visit family, etc. It is no problem to miss some of the group activities with possible exception of the welcome and farewell parties.

No, the German students are generally good English speakers. Any German students who identify as weak in spoken English would be placed in families that have some German language experience, but this accommodation is rarely needed.

No, families in surrounding cities are welcome to apply, although, in the event that we have more host families than incoming students Norfolk families would be prioritized.

Yes, Norfolk Sister Cities requires everybody in the home to be up-to-date on their Covid vaccinations. Likewise, the incoming students will have to provide proof of vaccination to participate in the exchange.