Do you have what it takes to be part of the District 5220 Group Study Exchange team ? The 2010-2011 exchange with District 4180 will be an exciting adventure in Mexico, while a second exchange will be with District 3230 in India!

Our first 2010-2011 Group Study Exchange (GSE) is a unique vocational and cultural opportunity for young professionals to study Mexico's institutions and ways of life, learn how their professions are practiced in Mexico, and exchange ideas. Our second 2010-2011 exchange is to India for cultural and vocational touring.

Click Here to read about the incoming teams and hosting opportunities.

The Group Study Exchange Team consists of one Rotarian Team Leader and four non-Rotarian young professionals. Applicants for team member must be between 25 and 40 years old and have at least two years experience in their profession.

Candidates must be able to secure the time off work to be available for the full length of the exchange. Additionally, the entire team will be guests of the district for at least one night and three meals during the Rotary District Conference April 29-May 1, 2011 at which time they will make a brief presentation on the exchange.

Information for team members in either exchange are listed below. All applications for either exchange must be complete, club endorsed and submitted to be received by the extended deadline which will be announced when we have received a minimally sufficient number of applications to fill both teams, and then it will be set one week later to allow those in process to complete and submit applications. Candidates may check this page for updates on the deadline, or may notify the GSE Chair of their intent to file and request email notification when a final date is set. The application period for Team Leader is closed for this year.

The trip dates for India are January 24 to March 2, 2011

The trip dates for Mexico are March 23rd to April 24th, 2011

TEAM MEMBER APPLICATION

contact GSE District Chair Alan Bailey, for further information.

Submit your completed, club endorsed application no later than 9/1/2010 to:

GSE c\o ALAN BAILEY

TEAM MEMBER INFORMATION

Application Process for Team Members

All interested applicants must first have their candidacy endorsed by a Rotary club in District 5220, the district where the applicant works or lives. From there, endorsed applications are sent on for consideration at the district level. APPLICATIONS MUST BE ENDORSED BY A CLUB IN ORDER TO BE CONSIDERED AND ARE NOT COMPLETE WITHOUT A CLUB ENDORSEMENT.

Eligibility Criteria: Team members MUST:

be between the ages of 25-40;
be employed full-time in a recognized profession for at least 2 years;
not be a Rotarian, honorary Rotarian, or employee of Rotary or the lineal descendant or spouse of a lineal descendant, a Rotarian, an honorary Rotarian, or an employee of Rotary;
not be the spouse of another team member;
not be an ex-Rotarian or the lineal descendant or spouse of a lineal descendant of an ex-Rotarian or ex-Rotary employee who resigned less than 36 months before the time of application.
Must work or live in the Rotary District. District 5220 comprises the community of Galt and following counties: Calaveras, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Stanislaus, San Joaquin, and Tuolumne

Ideal Candidates for team member are:

between the ages of 25 and 40; a citizen of the country in which they reside;
employed full-time in a recognized profession;
in good health;
neat in appearance and able to express themselves clearly and logically;
of a sound, general educational background;
interested in and clearly enthusiastic about their chosen vocation and in possession of outstanding vocational skills;
open-minded, tolerant, and flexible;
proficient in the major language of the partner district;
Comfortable working as part of a team with a schedule that is physically and emotionally demanding.

INCOMING TEAM HOSTING

We will be looking for a wide range of communities for the incoming teams to visit. Typically the teams will stay in a coommunity or metropolitan area for about a week. Each team member will have a different host family that provides housing and some meals. On most days the team members will get together for cultural or vocational touring opportunities. Some but not all hosts may also participate in the touring and provide transportation. The India team's visit will be coordinated by Chris Currie and the Mexico team's visit will be coordinated by Alan Bailey. In each of the communities visited, one Rotarian would be responsible for leading that community's planning for arranging hosting, cultural tours, vocational tours (India) and social events. The Mexico team vocational tours will be coordinated through Alan Bailey and with support and participation from Universities, Professional Associations, and Water and Sanitation providers.

If you are interested in participating in any aspect of these tours contact Alan Bailey for the Mexico exchange or Chris Currie for the India exchange. They will assist you in finding your role of choice in the planning and implementation of these wonderful international opportunities. You will find their contact information in Members Only. See your club president or secretary for a username and password to access that secure area.

Because we will have two exchanges in one Rotary year, there will be many more chances for clubs of all sizes and from all communities to participate. If your club or your town has never been involved, then step up and get involved.

Comments and questions may be addressed to webmaster@rotary5220.org. We hope you enjoy your visit.

Rotary District 5220 - Serving California's Central Valley and Mother Lode