Helen Cook

Survey Results — Cultural Care Au Pair Gets Great Reviews!

Posted by: hcook on January 22, 2010

THE RESULTS ARE IN ….  The results from the 2009 Host Family Survey are in … and the consensus is that our Host Families are overwhelmingly happy!  To share a few of the statistics:  - 96% of Host Families are satisfied with the quality of childcare that their Au Pair         provides  - 95% are satisfied with the support provided by their Local Childcare Coordinator - 97% are pleased with the choice they made to use the services of Cultural Care Au Pair - 96% would recommend the services of Cultural Care Au Pair to other families Thank you to our current Host Families for participating and for helping us to further improve our program! Host family feedback gathered through our customer satisfaction survey has contributed to several changes at Cultural Care Au Pair including:    - An improved Host Family and Au Pair matching process    - Increased new and repeat Host Family discounts    - New payment plan options    - Better online and phone support for Host Families. In addition, Host Families are able to provide direct feedback to senior management at face to face meetings held throughout the country, and they may participate in an online forum (www.community.culturalcare.com) created just for program participants. We are thrilled with these results, which are certified by independent survey company Discovery Surveys, Inc.  In fact, our participation rate (52% of active Host Families this time around) and the results themselves have improved each of the four times we have administered the surveys (spring and fall of 2008 and spring and fall of 2009).   For more detailed survey information, visit our website.

Haiti Earthquake Disaster Relief

Posted by: hcook on January 20, 2010

The epic earthquake in Haiti has affected all of us — the suffering is unbelievable and help is needed now and for a long time in the future.

At Cultural Care Au Pair and our parent company EF Education First, we believe in connecting people as citizens of the world, and breaking down barriers of language, culture and geography.  Never is that mission more important than in a time of crisis.  In order to reach out to the people of Haiti, EF Education First will match up to $100,000 of employee, student and customer donations made through the American Red Cross.  We believe this is our responsibility as a company, as educators and as global citizens.  We hope you will join us in our effort to aid the millions of Haitians who need our support.  Together, we can make a difference.

If you would like to make a donation, please click or paste the following link in your browser:   

http://american.redcross.org/efeducationfirst-emp

NEW “AUDIT” CLASS — Earn 3 Credits In 2 Weekends Locally at Muhlenberg College!

Posted by: hcook on October 20, 2009

Muhlenberg College - The Wescoe School - is offering a full college course - worth 3 credits 36 hours - to be taken over just two weekends!

This might be a good way for Lehigh Valley Au Pairs to earn at least one-half of the required education credits needed for the Au Pair Program.   Muhlenberg will honor the $350 per class (audit only) for Lehigh Valley Au Pairs.   Muhlenberg College is an excellent school in the Lehigh Valley - so Au Pairs can avoid the travel expenses that might be associated with going to other Weekend Colleges.

 The Classes offered are:

• Introduction to History of American Bad Guys
• American Ethnic Diversity
• Business Ethics
• Introduction to the Art of Acting
• Literature and Film
• Vodou in Haiti & the Diaspora

 Classes are offered over two weekends:

• January 8 (6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.), 9 and 10 (9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.)
• January 15, 16, and 17, 2010 (same times).

 Please contact The Wescoe School at Muhlenberg College at 484-664-3300 or wescoe@muhlenberg.edu for further details.   Please be sure to tell the school that you are an Au Pair with Cultural Care Au Pair (Helen Cook) and that you wish to “Audit” the course as an Au Pair.   Register Early - these classes may fill quickly!

Reminder: Au Pair Stipend Increase

Posted by: hcook on July 24, 2009

Please be advised that in May of 2007, legislation was passed which resulted in a three-step plan to increase the federal minimum wage each July until 2009. The first increase occurred in July, 2007, the second occurred in July, 2008 and the third increase will go into effect on Friday, July 24, 2009.

As a reminder, the au pair weekly stipend is based, in part, on the federal minimum wage and, therefore, will increase accordingly. In order to remain compliant with U.S. Department of State regulations, we are asking all host families pay their au pair at the new stipend rate of $195.75 effective the week of July 20th, 2009. (That would be THIS week’s stipend!) Cultural Care Au Pair literature and agreements stipulate that host families comply with all regulations and, therefore, adherence to these changes is required of all program participants.

The exact calculation used to determine the weekly stipend as well as the resulting changes to the stipend over the course of the three year plan is as follows:

Federal Minimum Wage x 45 Hours - 40% (room and board allowance) - Au Pair Weekly Stipend Total