The biggest part of my job as a group leader is to set the expectations for my group BEFORE we depart.  International travel, and group travel work differently than anything my students have really experienced before.  I like to meet with my groups  four times before we depart, so that everyone has had a chance to become acquainted and has heard about how they can best be prepared for our tour.

I would highly suggest planning a few meetings before your tour to get everyone on the same page.  I like to start in January for my June tour.  I know that it is April, and you might be thinking..."am I too late?"  Its never too late!  Just get your group organized and then get together!  Here are a few of the topics that I like to address with my groups:

Travel Safety
Foreign currency and budgeting spending spending money
Packing
What to expect for the day to day schedule of an educational tour.
What to expect for hotel rooms and food.
What sites we will see, special historic places

What all the details about these topics and more?  Click here to check out my Before Departure page, and steal all my resources!!!

What other things do you plan to prepare your group for?  Comment below and let me know!

As a group leader, I get asked about fundraising all of the time.  Everyone wants the next big idea that will bring in lots of cash.  Almost all of my groups have done fundraising in the past.  Some were more successful than others, and the  magic ingredients that have worked for every successful fundraiser were:  organization, advertising, and charm.  I couldn't begin to recount the amount of fundraisers that my travelers have executed in the last six years, but I can tell you that the best ones were well organized, advertised far and wide (by the way you can't beat word of mouth), and involved our students talking with potential patrons about their upcoming trip and inviting them to contribute.

Did you know? Everyone who signs up for an EF Tour has their own personal fundraising account?  On your EF Tours account,  you can find a link that can be copied and pasted into e-mail, and  everyone you know to contribute to your tour. I've had students do this in the past, and have been very successful.  How simple is that?  One e-mail could make a big difference in your balance!  Have your travelers log into their personal account to check it out at www.eftours.com.

You want ideas???  I've got ideas!  But don't get too excited...they aren't anything fancy, just good old fashioned, hard-working fundraisers.  The events that have brought in the most money for my groups are the ones that let their family, friends and community get involved and help out!  For a complete list of my ideas...click here!  If you have any questions about these, or need more details, don't hesitate to shoot me an e-mail at missjessicataylor@gmail.com.  I'd love to hear from you!

What are some of your best ideas?  Just like you, I'm always looking for new ones.  Let me know in the comments below!

I just had my first recruitment meeting, and it went well.  The turnout was lower than I was hoping for, but it seems like everyone is so busy these days with lots of commitments.  Thanks to my Tour Consultant, Kylie, I was fully prepared and kicked off my 2016 travel season with a bang!  I know that 2016 seems so far off, but when it comes to planning for an international tour, you can never start too early!  Are you thinking about having a meeting for students and parents?  Wondering where to start?  Well, I am here to help!

First, let's talk about WHY you should start as soon as possible:
-The earlier that your travelers enroll, the more months they have to pay off the tour = smaller monthly payments.  Who doesn't like that???

-When travelers enroll, they lock in the current price.  Thanks to the departure fees, the price of your tour will increase over time.  By enrolling, and paying the $95 enrollment fee, travelers can lock in the price, and it will not increase.

-With more members of your group signing up sooner, you will have a better idea about how many chaperones you will need, and will have plenty of time to make those arrangements.  

Next, its time to plan your meeting! 

1.  Pick a date, and location.  
          -I like to schedule mine several months in advance.  
         -Can you have it at school?  If not find an off campus site willing to host your meeting...a church, a restaurant, rec center, etc.
         -Do you need to request any technology, such as a computer, projector, etc.?

2.  Talk with your Tour Consultant.
          -Let them know the date and location of your meeting
          -Ask for more Itineraries and Enrollment Booklets (if you need them).
          -Ask if there is a GEA available to attend your meetings and help answer questions.

3.Nomination Form.  
          -Ask your fellow teachers to nominate students who they feel would be good candidates for traveling on an international tour.  
          -Use my Nomination Form.

4.  Parent Letter.  
         -I send a letter to each student who was nominated, letting them know about the tour and the upcoming meeting. 
         -Making sure that the letter gets home and into the hands of the parents is key! 
         -Start with my parent letter, and edit it as necessary for your tour.

5.  Advertise.  
          -I advertise the meeting all over school.  
          -Do this only if you are: (1) allowed to by your school administration (2) allowing every student in the school to be eligible to go on your tour.  
         -See the Recruiting Travelers page for more ideas.

6.  Recruitment Meeting Checklist
         -Print out my Recruitment Meeting Checklist.  It has step by step instructions for planning your meeting.

7.  Create meeting agenda.
          -Don't reinvent the wheel...use my sample agenda to get started!  
          -Not sure how to start?  Use my sample meeting agenda and edit away!

8.  Reminder e-mail.
          -About three days before my meeting, I send a reminder to students and parents about your meeting.

9.  Meeting day!
         -I always arrive early to set up the room, and double check that all the technology works.
         -I lay out the enrollment booklets, day-by-day itineraries, and sign in sheet on a table near the door.
         -I introduce myself to each attendee and ask them to sign in, and take a copy of each handout.
         -If you have a GEA come to your meeting, introduce them at the beginning of the meeting and let everyone know their role.

10.  After the meeting.
          -The next day, I send out a follow-up e-mail to everyone who attended (thanks to the sign-in sheet, I have their e-mail address).
          -I thank them for attending the meeting, and remind them about the sign-up deadline.  
          -Don't forget to include the link to the tour website so that they can sign up soon!

If you follow those 10 steps, you will be prepared and on your way to a great first meeting! I hope that your meeting goes well!  Feel free to contact me if you have any questions!

Ok, so as not to confuse you...I am planning ahead.  Waaaay ahead.  I have started recruiting for 2016.  So, my 2015 trip "Europe's Mediterranean Coast" has travelers enrolled and they are getting prepared to travel.  I am not turning my attention to the following year's tour and getting the ball rolling. 

It is always a good idea to get started early!  EF offers a great discount on tours for early enrollments.  For example, EF is currently offering a promotion of $200 off all 2016 tours for anyone who signs up by the end of October 2015.  This is such a great opportunity for my travelers to save money and have the small monthly payments.

Many new Group Leaders that I talk to tell me that they only want to focus on one tour at at time.  I understand that, I remember feeling overwhelmed too when I planned my first tour.  I can promise you that if you have any plans to travel again in the future, it is best not to wait.  Your travelers will thank you for giving them this money saving opportunity. 

So what exactly am I doing to get ready for 2016?  The very first thing I did was call my Tour Consultant and pick a tour that appeals to my  travelers.  Next, set a meeting date and invite everyone you know!   I sent out 150 nomination letters, put posters up all over school, and ran an announcement in on the school news station. Right now, I am getting ready for my recruitment meeting next week, where I will share all the important details with the parents of my potential travelers.  

Need some help getting started?  I have lots of resources to share with you:

I sent out over 150 nomination letters to students at my school.  Click here for an editable version.

I hung up bathroom fliers.  Click here for an example from one of my past tours.

I jazzed up the standard poster sent to me by EF and placed them in the hallways at school.  I also bought some cheap banners online and put them up in my school.

Click here for more ideas on how to recruit travelers

Click here for meeting resources

What are your best marketing ideas?  Share them in the comments below.

​Best of luck in planning your tour!  

Congrats!  You are now officially a Group Leader with EF Tours!  Now you may be thinking..."what exactly does that mean?"  I am here to tell you more than you ever wanted to know about your new role, and share some tips that I have learned along the way.  


So first, what exactly is a Group Leader:  This is the person (you and me) who is working with EF Tours to recruit, and prepare travelers for an international tour.  The Group Leader can travel for free after they have 6 participants enrolled on their tour.


What does a Group Leader do?  A group leader is responsible for doing the following:

• Officially set up a tour with EF Tours, by speaking with a representative from the company (Called a Tour Consultant)
• Advertise the tour, and recruit tour participants.  Click here for more information.
• Hold a parent meeting to inform parents about the tour, and the specifics of travel with EF Tours.  Click here for more information about the parent meeting.
• Make sure that potential travelers know how to enroll on your EF Tour.
• Answer student/parent questions about the tour or enrollment.
• Prepare your group to travel on your tour.  Click here for lots of tips on how to do this.
• Communicate the needs of the group with EF Tours.
• Make sure that all travelers have a valid passport.  Click here for help with that.
• Find appropriate chaperones to travel with your group.
• Collect tip money, ensure that the Tour Director and Bus Driver is tipped properly.
• Make sure all students are safe on tour.

That's it!  I know that list may seem very long, but most of this stuff you will already naturally do.  You are a teacher, who cares about their students, and wants them to have an experience that they will always remember.  You can do it, and I can help!  Use my website to get all the information you need to be a fantastic group leader.  Stay tuned to my blog, and I will be discussing everything you need to know to be ready for your tour!

What do you love most about being a group leader?  Comment below, I'd love to hear from you!

Follow me on a year long journey to get ready for my next EF Tour, Europe's Mediterranean Coast, in June 2015.  I promise to blog about every detail in my role as a Group Leader on a student tour.  We can do this together, and its going to be so much fun!  

If you have already set up your tour, and began to recruit travelers...congratulations!  You are off to a great start.  Stay tuned to this blog for updates about what to do next.


If you are just getting started, and don't have any travelers enrolled on your tour yet...no worries!  I am going to be blogging about the details of my 2016 tours, where I am starting from scratch.  I can definitely show you the way.  Here are a few tips to get started:

-Get started recruiting travelers.  Click here for some ideas
-Plan an Parent Meeting.  Click here for lots of info on how to do that.


I am always available to answer your questions, feel free to contact me anytime! 

​Where are you going?  I'd love to know, comment below!

I'm in one of those reflective moods.  You know, those times when you have a few minutes of "down time" and you are left alone with your thoughts.  Usually those moments are filled with cerebrations about my to-do list and mundane daily tasks.  Today, I caught myself reflecting on life (ahhh!) and wondering what I have to show for my time here on earth.  While my life is definitely not what I pictured when I was young, I would have to say that I am a very lucky girl.  I have a job that I love at a school that has become home to me.  I've been able to travel with over 150 students to more than 16 countries around the globe, and visit six continents.  Not many people can say that they have a job where everyday brings something new, and they can make an impact on the future. To be honest, traveling with my students is one of the BEST parts about my job.  Although it is not an official part of my teaching contract, it is a crucial part of my teaching philosophy...inspiring my students to become citizens of the world.  In the five years that I have spent pouring time and intention to having my students "travel ready," I realized that I am probably the one who has learned the most, not only about the world, but about myself.  Travel will do that to you, it will allow you to see other people and places in a whole new way, but it will also give opportunity for self reflection.  While I am not always one to take the time to self reflect, traveling the world has given me a new tape measure by which to judge myself.  I am so glad that I have the opportunity to work in a field that allows me the freedom to impact young lives and the time to expand those minds by showing them the world.  I don't know about you, but that just gets me excited!  I would say I'm a pretty lucky girl!