Au Pair Education Credits: Focus on Brown Mackie

Downtown Albuquerque, NM (Photo credit: Wikipedia, public domain)

Brown Mackie College provides career-focused post-secondary education at their Albuquerque, NM campus. Programs include Healthcare and Wellness, Business and Technology, Legal Studies, and Veterinary Technology.

Brown Mackie’s courses are offered at a pace that fits the needs of students with other obligations—including au pairs. The “One Course a Month” schedule lets students take one course this month, complete it, and then take a second class next month.

Brown Mackie College has a long history of educational excellence. The college opened in 1892 as part of the Kansas Wesleyan School of Business. Many changes ensued as Brown Mackie College first became part of American Education Centers in Kentucky, and later joined the Education Management Corporation from Pennsylvania. There are now more than 25 campuses in 15 states, including the Albuquerque campus, that are part of Brown Mackie College.

A list of names and websites for post-secondary schools (including Brown Mackie College) that are pre-approved in New Mexico for the GoAuPair education credit follows:

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Brown Mackie College(505) 559-5200Albuquerque http://www.brownmackie.edu

Brookline College – Albuquerque Campus(505) 880-2877Albuquerque http://brooklinecollege.edu/locations/albuquerque/

Central New Mexico Community College(505) 224-3000Albuquerque http://www.cnm.edu

University of New Mexico(505) 277-0111Albuquerque http://www.unm.edu/

Clovis Community College(800) 769-1409Clovis http://www.clovis.edu

Dine’ College- Crowpoint Site(505) 368-3500Crowpoint http://www.dinecollege.edu

Luna Community College(800) 588-7232Las Vegas http://www.luna.edu

The University of New Mexico-Los Alamos (UNM)(505) 662-0344Los Alamos http://www.la.unm.edu

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Children’s Health: An Ongoing Resource of Interest

English: Whole Foods Headquarters. Austin, TX March 2005 (Photo credit: Wikipedia, public domain)

GoAuPair is all about children.

There is a helpful series of pamphlets from Whole Foods Market that focuses on children’s health, and that are free in print from the Whole Body department or online. The most recent booklet is titled “Children’s Health.” It focuses on health concerns for kids, tweens and teens and related nutrition (e.g., DHA).

Whole Foods Market employs a store-wide policy for the products they sell. In particular, they prefer “plant-based and naturally-derived ingredients, pure essential oil fragrances, gentle preservatives, and non-petroleum ingredients.”

Raising a child today is not as easy as it was before modern chemicals became so prevalent. This series of pamphlets from Whole Foods offers Host Families and au pairs a chance to learn and decide for themselves how best to nurture the children in their care. Supporting podcasts are also available online, in the Whole Body category.

Albuquerque has two Whole Foods Markets, as well as a variety of other naturally-based stores.

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Early Fall in New Mexico, Land of Enchantment

One of many walking trails. (Photo credit: Wikipedia, public domain)

The state of New Mexico calls itself the “Land of Enchantment.” Long a haven for artists, the nickname refers at least partly to the magical colors and shadows of the sunlight captured in paintings, photos, and movies.

The natural light is especially lovely in early fall as sunflowers line the highways– or sunlight filters through the trees along walking trails in high desert areas.

Au pairs with a passion for nature can fall in love with New Mexico! Contact GoAuPair to learn more.

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J-1 and I-94: How Long Can An Au Pair Really Stay in the US?

“I just entered the US. I have a visitor’s visa that says it is good for 10 years, but at the airport they stapled a card in my passport that says I was admitted for 6 months. How long can I actually stay in the US: 6 months or 10 years?”

The secret is the little card they stapled into the visa. That little card is anI-94, and the I-94 tells the date on which you must leave the US. An au pair’s visa may expire during her program without consequences. However, an au pair must not stay in the US beyond the date on her I-94; consequences will ensue.

To recap, if a J-1 visa has a stamped expiration date of 3 or 6 months, that means only that the individual (e.g., an au pair) must travel into the US within 3 or 6 months. The I-94 tells how long the au pair may actually stay in the US. If the I-94 says 12 months, then 12 months is when the au pair must leave.

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NM Au Pair Childcare: Keeping Family Immunity High

A local NM magazine called Natural Awakenings dedicated its August issue (see www.NewMexico-NaturalAwakeningsMag.com ) to simple, more naturally healthy lifestyle changes we can all make in our families. Two articles, “Improving Immunity: Natural Ways to Keep Kids Well” and “Balance Blesses Our Youth: Wise Parenting Insights from Wendy Mogel” are especially appropriate to au pairs and Host Families.

First are tips for keeping kids well.

•  Manage stress. Kids need up time and down time.
• Eat healthy. There is more nutrition in fresh foods. Emphasize vitamin C.
• Get more exercise.
• Take a multivitamin

Next are tips for helping students of all ages keep their balance.

• Encourage learning in the natural world
• Make time for unstructured play and “down-time”
• Come together as a family at least once a day

Summer Blackhurst, a professional blog writer for GoAuPair, outlined the dangers of this coming season: a CDC predicted two-fold increase in whooping cough, as well as a seasonal peak in infectious diseases of all kinds. http://www.goaupair.com/Host-Families/Blog/Child-Care-Tips/CDC—Whooping-Cough-outbreak-in-US.aspx .

Live healthy! It pays!

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Au Pair Education Credits: Focus on CNM

A variety of post-secondary schools in New Mexico are acceptable for au pair education credits, but CNM (Central New Mexico Community College) has a few unique advantages.

There are multiple CNM campuses to choose from: Montoya in the Albuquerque Heights, Main in downtown Albuquerque, South Valley, Westside in Taylor Ranch, and the new Rio Rancho campus. CNM is a full-service community college with classes in arts and sciences, nursing, technologies, computers, and trades. A wide variety of class days and times are available at each campus. The total CNM enrollment is more than 26,000 students, and the Montoya campus alone serves 6600 students. Yet, there is still a home-town feel.

CNM, under its former name of TVI, became a leading school in computer education in the 1990s and 2000s. Their Microsoft (e.g., Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint) and Adobe (e.g., PhotoShop, InDesign, Illustrator) classes were copied nationwide.

Today CNM students study business applications, media and web graphics (including digital editing), computer assisted drafting (CAD), and micro-technology (memes). Leading employers such as Intel and Disney recruit CNM students for internships. New classes include WordPress, Google Analytics, eCommerce, and Entrepreneurship. Best of all, the tuition in CNM’s computer classes is subsidized, at a cost significantly below the general tuition.

A list of names and websites for post-secondary schools (including CNM) that are pre-approved in New Mexico for the GoAuPair education credit follows:

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Brown Mackie College(505) 559-5200Albuquerque http://www.brownmackie.edu

Brookline College – Albuquerque Campus(505) 880-2877Albuquerque http://brooklinecollege.edu/locations/albuquerque/

Central New Mexico Community College(505) 224-3000Albuquerque http://www.cnm.edu

University of New Mexico(505) 277-0111Albuquerque http://www.unm.edu/

Clovis Community College(800) 769-1409Clovis http://www.clovis.edu

Dine’ College- Crowpoint Site(505) 368-3500Crowpoint http://www.dinecollege.edu

Luna Community College(800) 588-7232Las Vegas http://www.luna.edu

The University of New Mexico-Los Alamos (UNM)(505) 662-0344Los Alamos http://www.la.unm.edu

Mesalands Community College(575) 461-4413Tucumcari http://www.mesalands.edu

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New Mexico Films

(The Albuquerque Mountains Photo credit: Wikipedia)

New Mexico’s history in film is longer than its statehood. In 1898 a black and white documentary titled Indian Day School featured Isleta Pueblo which is located south of Albuquerque. The film was 1 minute long.

Over the years there have been a number of well-known films that were made partially or completely in New Mexico. Butch Cassidy graced New Mexico in 1969 and 1979. Jonathan Livingston Seagull was filmed in 1973. Indiana Jones and the Last Crusaders became real in 1989. Milagro Beanfield War (a local classic) was filmed in 1988.

If you see footage in a film and think it looks very much like the mountains East of Albuquerque, or the rolling hills and golden light of Santa Fe, you may be right. As a final treat, check out this Facebook page.

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Au Pairs and Culture Shock

“Peace Path”. The caption advocates for reconciliation and reparation rather than punishment. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Culture shock usually comes in 4 phases:

• Phase I is a honeymoon. The new culture is fun and exciting.
• Phase II brings a crisis of adjustment, including feelings of anxiety. The au pair and Host Family may increasingly need to negotiate a variety of differences. Homesickness may also occur, and negative attitudes predominate. “Culture shock” is recognized as a cause.
• Phase III is a return to a more confident outlook. Major adjustments have been negotiated, and feelings change to “we can do this.”
• Phase IV is acceptance and ongoing adaptation. New routines and relationships have become status quo. A new working family unit has been achieved.

When culture shock is in process, it can be difficult to recognize the different phases. However, this is a normal process that sometimes proceeds linearly, and that sometimes loops around and repeats a phase. Most families and au pairs resolve culture shock successfully and go on to deepen their relationship.

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Au Pairs and Homesickness

English: Robert Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

An au pair may love his/her new Host Family and the children s/he cares for—and an au pair may be homesick and sad at the same time. What is best to do?

GoAuPair takes special precautions to help Host Families and au pairs prevent homesickness. A high percentage of au pairs (69% or more) have lived away from home before coming to this country. Such experiences lessen the chance of homesickness. GoAuPair recommends that Host Families ask the au pair about   independent living during the interview process.

Local Area Representatives next provide immediate support. When a new au pair arrives, s/he is welcomed within 48 hours by the LAR, and immediate needs are met. An initial activity is scheduled soon thereafter. Meeting other au pairs, and becoming quickly familiar with the local area, further smooth the transition.

In the event these  normal precautions still leave a feeling of homesickness to be handled, it is important for the au pair to remember to stay busy, to stay positive, to remember that his/her working visit to this country is really quite short—and to talk about his/her feelings as part of family/LAR sharing times.

New Mexico, Florida, and Arizona are the three states in the U.S.  with the most sunshine. NM blue skies lift moods, and an active and increasingly cosmopolitan NM lifestyle provides real interest. Understanding Host Families and LARs listen. All these things help make au pair homesickness very manageable.

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Childcare on the Web: HealthyChild.org

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Au pairs are “children people.” They come to love the children in their Host Families, even as they themselves are loved. One practical outworking of that love is the desire to care for their children in as healthy a manner as possible.

HealthyChild.org is a non-profit organization dedicated to helping parents raise healthy children—through awareness of nutrition, environmental toxins, and household dangers. A partnership with HealthyChild.org has been formed through WebMD.

The online resource titled Health eHome empowers parents and caregivers in their efforts to truly keep children healthy and safe. Health eHome is a virtual world that not only talks about this process, but also shows it in 3D.

This year HealthyChild.org celebrates its 20^th birthday. Special participation kits are available for the cost of a donation to cover mailing. A variety of experiential activities are also available online to test awareness.

While an official endorsement of any outside organization is beyond the appropriate business boundaries of GoAuPair per se, it nonetheless is apparent that the content and links of HealthyChild.org have the potential to become an ongoing private resource of interest for many au pairs, Host Families, and the children they love.

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