The King’s Academy is seeking dynamic, Christian families who are interested in providing a safe and nurturing home for international students. Respite care is a family that provides short term replacement housing for international students for host families or replaces a dorm parent in the care of international students in a dorm house. If you live within a 30 minute commute of the school, subscribe to TKA’s Statement of Faith, and have an extra bedroom, you are eligible to apply.
Sometimes things come up that Host Families need to leave the area and cannot take their student with them. Dorm parents are provided 4 respite care days every month of the school year so that they are able to stay fresh and ready to provide the highest level of care possible. In both of these cases we rely on replacement parents to keep the same high level of care in the regular parents absence – these replacement parents are providing respite care.
How long would I be providing respite care?
Each situation is a case-by-case basis, but the most common time frame is 1-4 days.
How many international students would I be responsible for if I provide respite care for the dorm?
The most common amount is 6 students.
How will I find out about an available opportunity to provide respite care?
Approved applicants will receive communication from the ISP office whenever a request for respite care is submitted from a host family or dorm parents.
Are there any liability or insurance issues that I should be concerned about?
Students have their own insurance policy and spending money. TKA requires (and will assist you with the completion of) the necessary legal paperwork to ensure that your family and the student are properly covered and that you have the necessary legal rights to care for your student.
What should I expect in terms of expenses for our family?
In addition to a safe and nurturing environment, host families are asked to provide their student(s) with three nutritious meals each day, transportation, internet access, and access to any other appropriate academic materials. Beginning in the 2015-2016 school year, each international student will be given a daily lunch credit in the cafeteria on school days when lunch is served. Most major activities, trips, and fees associated with being a student at TKA will be covered by the student’s Integration Fee. The student will be responsible for activities and events not covered by this fee. In exchange for your incurred expenses, participating families will be compensated with a monthly stipend for each month the student resides with the family over the 10 month period.
Students are assigned host families located in safe and respectable areas. A Respite Care Provider is expected to provide safe transportation if providing care on a school day. The travel time from the home to school should average no more than 30 minutes each way. International students are eligible for TKA school bus transportation. Respite Care will provide transportation to and from necessary appointments to maintain school and/or program compliance. Respite Care should also assist in providing for or arranging transportation for social and extracurricular activities. Respite Care Providers are asked to meet the normal transportation needs that a student may have.
No. In fact, we prefer that you don’t (at least not the native language of your student). Students who are admitted into the program have demonstrated the ability to speak conversational English and learning to speak English fluently is one of their primary motivations for coming to the US. The best way for you to help your student reach their goals is to communicate with them as often as possible in English.
What if there is a problem or an emergency?
TKA provides host families with dedicated local assistance, training, and 24/7 emergency support throughout the school year. Help is always a phone call away..
If you would like to take advantage of this unique opportunity to make a difference in a young person’s life, fill out the form on the right so we can contact you.