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Tutor for Homestay or Organization Exchange

 
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AMarino



Joined: 28 Dec 2014
Posts: 2

PostPosted: Wed Jan 14, 2015 7:49 am    Post subject: Tutor for Homestay or Organization Exchange Reply with quote

Hello,

This is probably a long shot, as I am looking for something different from a regular school-type job. I'm not sure if this forum can help, but here goes.

I'm an American citizen of full Italian descent. I have a CELTA and I've taught in Poland, Myanmar and Cambodia. I've been living, working and volunteering in Cambodia for most of the last seven years. I've done some teaching here, but mostly NGO work in the areas of community-based tourism and water safety.

I would very much like to discover my heritage, culture and ancestry. Ideally, I'd like to find a tutor-for-homestay type of arrangement. Or, possibly, working/teaching with small NGOs, community groups etc.

In addition to teaching English, I am skilled in a number of other areas - website development and social media, AP Style, editing and content writing, proposals and grants, donor and email communications, capacity-building, training, project development, financial administration etc.

I am older (51), mature and competent. I don't necessarily need a fully paid job, though a stipend would be nice. While I am willing to pay for flights, I do hope to "break even" in terms of my costs for living in Italy for an extended period. I could even do some house-sitting and/or basic farm work. As mentioned, a tutoring for room-and-board exchange would be ideal. I'd prefer a smaller town or rural area, though one of the bigger cities would probably be fine.

My mother's parents are from Sant'Elia Fiumerapido (near Mount Cassino) and I have information about their births. I think I have some living relatives there. Somewhere in this region would be most appealing, however, I'm open-minded.

I think the visa for Americans is 90 days , so I would like to stay that long, and hopefully longer if it's possible and situation is working out for all involved.

I'd appreciate any ideas, help, leads and networking. In addition to the home/tutor exchange possibility, I'm sure Italy has plenty of social organizations and groups that sometimes need assistance and tutors in English.

This is a serious inquiry and I can provide a CV and references.

Thank you very much for taking the time to read all this Smile

Andrew
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Louisdf



Joined: 05 Feb 2013
Posts: 60

PostPosted: Thu Jan 15, 2015 11:26 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Your plans are only workable if you volunteer for free. A 'stipend' (even if it would be just 50 euros a month) you talk about is still compensation for working.
Of course, you may wish to work illegally, but life will not be rosy. It will be impossible for you to rent a room/flat, get a mobile phone, open a bank account etc. You will be seen as a target to be exploited, as people know that if you go to the police, then it's you who will be in trouble for disobeying schengen zone rules/Italian laws. You will have no legal recourse whatsoever if your 'employer' refuses to pay any of your promised wages/stipend at the end of the month.
Also,

Quote:
I think the visa for Americans is 90 days , so I would like to stay that long, and hopefully longer if it's possible and situation is working out for all involved

It cannot work out at all. You can only spend a maximum of 90 days in every 180 day period (from the day you entered the Schengen zone).
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lindaann



Joined: 03 Oct 2014
Posts: 8

PostPosted: Thu Jan 15, 2015 6:07 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Are you eligible for dual citizenship thru your parents/grandparents? I just was recognized as a dual citizen and now I can work in Italy without worrying about visas or under the table jobs.
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esl_prof



Joined: 30 Nov 2013
Posts: 2006
Location: peyi kote solèy frèt

PostPosted: Thu Jan 15, 2015 6:17 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

As an American citizen, you're eligible to apply for the Fulbright English Teaching Assistant program which, while highly competitive, is one of the few ways you'd be able to legally teach in Italy without an EU passport.

http://us.fulbrightonline.org/about/types-of-grants/english-teaching-assistant-grants

A second thought, but possibly a long shot: How recent is your Italian ancestry? If you can demonstrate that one of your grandparents was an Italian citizen (even if s/he was not born in Italy), you're eligible for Italian citizenship. It might take you a year or two (or longer) to get the paperwork straightened out, but once you have an Italian passport in hand, you shouldn't have any difficulty finding work in Italy or, for that matter, anywhere else within the EU.

My grandfather was born here in the U.S. to Italian immigrant parents who, because they did not acquire U.S. citizenship until after he was born, is still considered to have been an Italian citizen under Italian law, thus making me, my siblings, and cousins eligible for Italian citizenship as well. We looked into the process a few years ago (and I can probably still find the websites if you're interested) but opted not to pursue it since, frankly, none of us really have any interest in living and working in the EU. However, if you're committed to spending several years or more in Italy (or elsewhere in the EU), it would probably be worth investing the time and expense into pursuing Italian citizenship if you're eligible.
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AMarino



Joined: 28 Dec 2014
Posts: 2

PostPosted: Fri Jan 16, 2015 12:25 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the replies.

I'm mostly interested in a homestay/farmstay/housesitting type of situation. Some place where I can exchange English tutoring (and possibly other skills and work) for room and board with a family/community. Or, volunteering with an NGO or social organization.
Perhaps, I shouldn't have used the word stipend as that implies a "job." However, if there might happen to be a way to earn a few Euro by doing some extra tutoring for other families and/or freelance editing and writing for a company and organization then that would help. I wouldn't necessarily classify that as illegal or under-the-table, though others may.
I'm not looking to live and work long-term in Italy.

Thanks
Andrew

As for the dual citizenship prospect, I explored that about 10 years ago and even got 95% of the required documentation done, but I never could get verifiable proof about when/if my maternal grandfather was naturalized as an American citizen. That was about $1,000 of paperwork with no result.
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esl_prof



Joined: 30 Nov 2013
Posts: 2006
Location: peyi kote solèy frèt

PostPosted: Fri Jan 16, 2015 2:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

AMarino wrote:
I'm mostly interested in a homestay/farmstay/housesitting type of situation. Some place where I can exchange English tutoring (and possibly other skills and work) for room and board with a family/community. Or, volunteering with an NGO or social organization


In that case, you might try checking out current editions of Work Your Way Around the World or Gap Years for Grown Ups, both of which are authored by Susan Griffith. Alternatively, you might just google "volunteer in Italy," "homestay in Italy," etc. and see what comes up. Finally, you might poke around the website nomadicmatt.com and try posting some inquiries on the forums over there. One article on that site that might be of interest to you, for example, gives a detailed overview of "How to Become a Housesitter."

http://www.nomadicmatt.com/travel-blogs/house-sitting/


Quote:
As for the dual citizenship prospect, I explored that about 10 years ago and even got 95% of the required documentation done, but I never could get verifiable proof about when/if my maternal grandfather was naturalized as an American citizen. That was about $1,000 of paperwork with no result.


Sorry to hear that. Frankly, that's one of the reasons that I was/am reluctant to pursue Italian citizenship. If I really had a strong desire to live and work in the EU, then perhaps I'd be more inclined to give it a try. But investing tons of money, only to come up at a dead end, for something that I don't really plan to use anyway just isn't worth it.
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Louisdf



Joined: 05 Feb 2013
Posts: 60

PostPosted: Fri Jan 16, 2015 10:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

AMarino wrote:
Thanks for the replies.

I'm mostly interested in a homestay/farmstay/housesitting type of situation. Some place where I can exchange English tutoring (and possibly other skills and work) for room and board with a family/community. Or, volunteering with an NGO or social organization.
Perhaps, I shouldn't have used the word stipend as that implies a "job." However, if there might happen to be a way to earn a few Euro by doing some extra tutoring for other families and/or freelance editing and writing for a company and organization then that would help. I wouldn't necessarily classify that as illegal or under-the-table, though others may.
I'm not looking to live and work long-term in Italy.


That doesn't matter, if you are earning any money, you are working. Therefore you must have a visa and residence permit. The amount or time spent earning money is irrelevant. Just like non-US citizens cannot step onto a flight to the US under the pretense of travelling/sightseeing, but then ask about working in Walmart at the weekend. As they would be competing against unemployed Americans who should be working, they would need a Visa and residence permit. The same concept applies in the Schengen zone to non-EU citizens.

You could legally work part-time on a student visa, however this will involve attending classes on a daily basis and paying for tuition. Tutition fees alone will likely cancel out any money you make from teaching part-time.
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AGoodStory



Joined: 26 Feb 2010
Posts: 738

PostPosted: Sun Feb 22, 2015 1:39 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:

I'm mostly interested in a homestay/farmstay/housesitting type of situation. Some place where I can exchange English tutoring (and possibly other skills and work) for room and board with a family/community. Or, volunteering with an NGO or social organization.


Greenheart has (or had) a homestay program in Italy--a certain number of hours per week of English language tutoring and/or conversation in exchange for room and board. I seem to remember it had somewhat ridiculous age restrictions, though; upper limit of 45 or 50, but I'm not sure about that. I'll see if I can find a link to the program. It was under 90 days in length, no stipend that I recall, and they were clearly trying to recruit North Americans.



.
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esl_prof



Joined: 30 Nov 2013
Posts: 2006
Location: peyi kote solèy frèt

PostPosted: Sun Feb 22, 2015 2:31 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

AGoodStory wrote:
Greenheart has (or had) a homestay program in Italy--a certain number of hours per week of English language tutoring and/or conversation in exchange for room and board. I seem to remember it had somewhat ridiculous age restrictions, though; upper limit of 45 or 50, but I'm not sure about that. I'll see if I can find a link to the program. It was under 90 days in length, no stipend that I recall, and they were clearly trying to recruit North Americans.


Here's a related thread on Greenheart that started a day or two ago:
http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=109621
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AGoodStory



Joined: 26 Feb 2010
Posts: 738

PostPosted: Sun Feb 22, 2015 5:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Andrew, here is a link to Greenheart's volunteer teaching program in Italy.

Thttp://greenhearttravel.org/program/adult/teach/volunteer-teach-in-italy

This is their program for teaching in schools, but there is a further link on the page that describes their homestay exchange program. It appears that the age restrictions apply to the school program (19-35!) but not to teaching in a homestay. Unfortunately, they do charge a fee, which I had forgotten. It's a bit steep, so that makes the program much less attractive. Sad

.
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