Mission Statement Promoting educational and cultural awareness through global study abroad programs. Students, spend an exciting school year studying abroad! Living with a host family offers the excitement of study abroad in the security of a family setting. Completely immerse yourself in another culture as you become part of the host family and participate in all of their activities GCEFwas founded with the belief that international student exchange makes a vital contribution to human understanding by offering students, their paretns and host families an irreplaceable opportunity to deepen comprehension and respect for other people and cultures and to discover the realities of the human community.

GCEF is a non-profit, tax-exempt, educational foundation for high school students,dedicated to fostering increased international understanding through the promotion of worldwide intercultural learning and living experience. GCEF is governed by a Board of Trustees including representatives from related fields such as education, business, host families and individuals who have personally participated in exchange programs. GCEF had received a grant from the Bureau of Educational and Culturual Affairs of the United States Information Agency under the authority of the Fulbright-Hays Act of 1961.

The program is supervised by professionally trained people with many years of experience in intercultural student exchange. Many staff memebers have lived and taught or studied abroad. GCEF staff includes a Director of Counseling, Regional Managers, State Supervisors and over 400 Area Representatives in 48 States with overseas representatives in Sweden, Norway, Finland, UK, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Italy, Latvia, Thailand, China, South Korea, Japan, Mongolia and Brazil.

The program enables qualified overseas high school students between the ages of 15 and 18 the opportunity to live with an American Host Family and attend a local high school for one academic school year. The same opportunity in reverse is offered to American high school students. Only qualified students by GCEF standards are accepted to spend a school year overseas with a carefully screened and selected Host Family.

GCEFis about making new friends, learning about?different cultures, and making your personal contribution to the ultimate goal of world peace.


contact@gcefprograms.org