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YouthCaN Conference FAQS

1. What are the criteria for students to join the global YouthCaN Planning Committee?

Answer: There are no criteria. Youth can just join right in the conversation.

2. If our students are involved in the global YouthCaN Planning Committee how and when will they know about the decisions the group makes?

Answer: They should all happen by way of the YouthCaN forum so as long as your students are participating via the iEARN forum.  You and they should check the forum regularly so the youth will know about any decision immediately.  It’s also possible to “subscribe” e-mail addresses to the forum if accessing the web is difficult or expensive for you and your students.

3. We want to present a workshop at the Conference in NYC. How large can our group be?

Answer:  We have a wide variety of workshop spaces, from a typical classroom that seats a total of 30 to theaters that seat a total of 290. With this in mind the size of the presenting group can vary, depending on the format of your workshop. If you are presenting a hands-on classroom activity, I would suggest a maximum of about 5 student presenters. If you are doing some sort of theater performance, you could have many "presenters" or "actors" in this case.

4. How many adults can assist students who are presenting a workshop at the Conference in NYC?

Answer: In YouthCaN we strongly believe in Youth being the leaders, so adults are not generally involved in the presentation. We support the youth from the sidelines, and the degree of support and number of adults required would vary based on the complexity of the workshop, the skills of the students and other considerations. We minimize the adult presence in the presentation.

5. How many adults can travel with students who are attending, in any capacity, the Conference in NYC?

Answer: If you are thinking about chaperones for travel and attending the conference, we do recommend 1 adult per every 10 youth

6. Are there any age limits for the students?

Answer: Up to 18 years old has been our guideline.

7. Do we need to pay an IEARN membership fee of $100 for a whole group or for each individual?

Answer: There is no fee to participate in the YouthCaN Conference or YouthCaN in general.  If you are interested in participating in any of the 200+ other projects within iEARN, US teachers are asked to pay a minimal membership fee of $100 for access to projects and global community of 44,000+ educators in 165 countries. Contact iEARN-USA, <iearn@us.iearn.org>.

8. Are all the expenses of participation in the Conference covered by us or will some parts be covered by iEARN?

Answer: There is no registration fee for participation in the conference. You are responsible for all of your travel, housing and food expenses related to attending YouthCaN in NYC.

9. Do you have some suggestions for places to stay that are relatively close (walking distance) to the American Museum of Natural History?

Answer: Here are some suggestions for places that are relatively close (all walking distance) to the American Museum of Natural History, which is between West 77^th to 81^st Streets and Amsterdam Avenue, next to Central Park.

• Hotel Belleclaire: http://www.hotelbelleclaire.com
• Hotel Beacon: http://www.beaconhotel.com
• Hotel Newton: http://www.thehotelnewton.com
• Youth Hostel: http://www.hinewyork.org
• International Student Center: http://www.nystudentcenter.org/AboutUs.html

The per night rates are very different at these places.

10. About how much should we budget, daily for food?

Answer: For food, you will need approximately (in US dollars):

• Breakfast: $7-12
• Lunch:   $8-17
• Dinner:  $12-25

11. Are there any grants or sponsors for this event?

Answer:  This is a question best answered by iEARN. iEARN-USA <iearn@us.iearn.org>.

12. We need US visas to enter the country. Will we have visa support?

Answer: In the past iEARN-USA has written letters of invitation for Visa applications. iEARN will need: 1) the full name of each applicant; 2) their date of birth; 3) place of birth; 4) their passport number. And perhaps other information like: 1) travel itinerary; and 2) name of school and/or traveling organization. Unfortunately, a letter of invitation does not guarantee a USA visa.  This is a decision solely made by the official in the US Embassy.  Contact iEARN-USA <iearn@us.iearn.org>.