People to People Leadership Summit - is it a scam?

[MrsPete]

I don't think it's a scam as much as just not an honor.

I can agree with that. I'd also say it's not a good value for the money.

Here's an analogy: If I say I'll bake you some absolutely delicious chocolate chip cookies, and my price is $500 per dozen . . . that's not a scam. I've been completely upfront about what I will provide. No deception whatsoever. However, that doesn't mean it's a good value!

 

[tajz90]

Well, it's not a scam. Not sure if your child's teacher has to submit name, but the school does. My child traveled with PP in 5th grade to a leadership summit in DC. They take very good care of the children and security is very tight around them. They would go to class each day in the morning, visit sites around DC during the day and listen to a guest speaker in the evening.

The letter the OP is speaking of is an educational travel op to see diff parts of the world. We have encountered PP group on vacation and again, I was impressed with how the group of kids were handled.

Yes, it's just a travel group, but one of the better ones.

Our child is " invited " every year to a diff travel op , but we decline because it is quite expensive. Very happy that he went with them to DC though and I wouldn't change it.

To pay for trips, you can apply for scholarship money with them, and they also send fundraising ideas for students.

 

[NYCDiane]

I can agree with that. I'd also say it's not a good value for the money.

Here's an analogy: If I say I'll bake you some absolutely delicious chocolate chip cookies, and my price is $500 per dozen . . . that's not a scam. I've been completely upfront about what I will provide. No deception whatsoever. However, that doesn't mean it's a good value!

Your chocolate chip cookie biz may be up front, not deceiveing. However, the People to People thing is deceiving. They lead you to believe that your child was one of very few "chosen" when, in reality, they just use a mass mailing list. They lead you to believe that President Obama is involved in their group and, if you look at the small print, he isn't (and probably doesn't even know they exist!) They lead you to believe it's some kind of honor when, in reality, they are merely a travel group that overcharges for trips. They make it seem that you have to "apply" and get letters of recommendation when, in reality, whoever sends in a check that clears can go.

 

[tajz90]

Your chocolate chip cookie biz may be up front, not deceiveing. However, the People to People thing is deceiving. They lead you to believe that your child was one of very few "chosen" when, in reality, they just use a mass mailing list. They lead you to believe that President Obama is involved in their group and, if you look at the small print, he isn't (and probably doesn't even know they exist!) They lead you to believe it's some kind of honor when, in reality, they are merely a travel group that overcharges for trips. They make it seem that you have to "apply" and get letters of recommendation when, in reality, whoever sends in a check that clears can go.

That's not technically true. We had a friend that tried to nominate her son so he could go with his friends and he wasn't accepted. That I do know for a fact because the mother and son were extremely disappointed.

I had no idea though that they try to sell it by saying that Obama is involved. We never had any communications that said any president approved it except for its founder. People to People was founded by Eisenhower and his granddaughter is the current CEO.

It is still just a student travel organization, but a good one.

 

[MichelleVW]

My daughter went on two People to People trips. One to the UK and one to Australia. Yes it's expensive...and no, it didn't help her get into college or anything else, but it's not a horrible thing if you can afford it.

 

[NYCDiane]

That's not technically true. We had a friend that tried to nominate her son so he could go with his friends and he wasn't accepted. That I do know for a fact because the mother and son were extremely disappointed.

I had no idea though that they try to sell it by saying that Obama is involved. We never had any communications that said any president approved it except for its founder. People to People was founded by Eisenhower and his granddaughter is the current CEO.

It is still just a student travel organization, but a good one.

If you look on the left margin of the letter, you'll see his name (along with many others) and it leads you to think they are directly involved with the organization.

I received a few letters from them for my daughter. The first one, I opened, read, and immediately tossed. The subsequent ones, I didn't even bother opening.

 

[thumbalyna]

Well, it's not a scam. Not sure if your child's teacher has to submit name, but the school does. My child traveled with PP in 5th grade to a leadership summit in DC. They take very good care of the children and security is very tight around them. They would go to class each day in the morning, visit sites around DC during the day and listen to a guest speaker in the evening.

The letter the OP is speaking of is an educational travel op to see diff parts of the world. We have encountered PP group on vacation and again, I was impressed with how the group of kids were handled.

Yes, it's just a travel group, but one of the better ones.

Our child is " invited " every year to a diff travel op , but we decline because it is quite expensive. Very happy that he went with them to DC though and I wouldn't change it.

To pay for trips, you can apply for scholarship money with them, and they also send fundraising ideas for students.

My daughter did the DC trip when she was in 7th grade. They stayed at a hotel in Maryland. They had classes, guest speakers and visited historical sites. They went to Gettysburg, Jamestown, Yorktown and all the DC places. I think it was a great experience for her. She had received the letters to go on the ones out of country but those were more travel opportunities than leadership forums. She earned credits when she went to DC that had she attended public school would have meant something but because she went to a "prep" school for high school they didnt mean anything. She was nominated by her teacher and two other classmates were as well and they all attended.

 

[gk90]

We got an invite for DD years ago but didn't really like the sound of it especially after a web search.
Here's a good thread with people's experiences (including one family that got an invite for their cat!) and comments on how it doesn't help on college applications:
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/976963-people-people-scam-3.html

And a link to a non-profit international youth travel organization
http://www.cisvusa.org/about.php
To see pricing for their programs you need to go to the "Find a chapter" page for your local chapter.

 

[tajz90]

We've used two student travel groups. People to People was great, top notch. EF Tours was terrible and a waste of money. Neither trip was taken as anything but an opportunity to travel and learn. For those thinking it will help get into college, I seriously doubt it would.

 

[Brer Shay]

With the exception of the Washington, DC Leadership Summit, People to People is a glorified and overpriced travel agency for students. They recruit chaperones by giving teachers free travel. They are generally a good experience, but not really leadership driven. The DC one includes access to some amount of contact with government staffers who are used to giving educational talks to kids and it's usually good for kids in 5th-8th grades, typically a shorter trip as well.

 

[mjkacmom]

Your chocolate chip cookie biz may be up front, not deceiveing. However, the People to People thing is deceiving. They lead you to believe that your child was one of very few "chosen" when, in reality, they just use a mass mailing list. They lead you to believe that President Obama is involved in their group and, if you look at the small print, he isn't (and probably doesn't even know they exist!) They lead you to believe it's some kind of honor when, in reality, they are merely a travel group that overcharges for trips. They make it seem that you have to "apply" and get letters of recommendation when, in reality, whoever sends in a check that clears can go.

This is exactly the problem I have with this company. If they were upfront about the fact that they were just an expensive travel company, I'd have no issue. However, they pretend that it's an honor to be invited to go, almost guilting parents into signing their child up, even if they can't afford it (asking parents to "fundraise" for their child's vacation).

I just toss them.

 

[mapmakerj]

My Ds got one last year and right away I knew that it was not completely on the up and up. It said he was "nominated" and he was chosen to go to Australia. My son has ADHD,an LD and struggles in some of his classes. He is nowhere near a top student and there is no way any teacher would nominate him for a supposed academic honor. The letter went right in the trash.

 

[Halbleib1]

I was a people to people student ambassador the summer before my senior year in high school. Was it expensive? Yes but it was an experience of a lifetime. The tours are set up much like what I have read about Adventures by Disney. You get to do things you normally would not get to do on your own. You have a personal bus driver and tour guide. We also had a home stay with a family in Austria. This was one of the best parts of the trip. The families are well checked out before hand. The hotels we stayed at were 4 and 5 star hotels and very clean. The only place we stayed at that was not a hotel was in Venice Italy. We stayed right in Venice at a Monistary. It was set up much like a college dorm room would be so a few of us shared a room. It was an old building but clean. I raised about half of the money myself with my parents giving me the rest. It cost 4089.00 including trip insurance for 15 days in Europe. The flight alone was 1089.00- we flew British Airways. We went to Austria, Francy, Italy, Switzerland and Germany. The chaperones we had were all school teachers. If you trust your child and he/she is responsible and you can afford it I say go for it. We were able to earn a credit when we got back by writing a report about our experience. You can also pay to earn college credits. The honorary chairman of the people to people organization is the President of the US. In some cases student ambassadors have had the chance to meet the president and or first lady. The goal of people to people is to educate about different cultures and to bring people of different cultures together.

FYI: The only connection I have with this organization is the trip that I took with them in Summer of 1998.

They find people in one of three ways: A national computer list, A teacher nominates them or a former student ambassador nominates them. So for those receiving letters saying they were nominated they probably had a teacher or former ambassador reccommend them.

As part of the process of being picked we had to have either two or three letters of referral(can't remember the exact number) as well as an interview with the leaders that would be chaperoning the trip. After we were chosen we met once a month on a Saturday to get to know the chaperones as well as the others in our group and to learn about the basics of the countries we would be visiting and to ask any questions we might have. As well as safety and what was expected behavior wise.

We did not have "classes" as part of our trip but we did get an education in history and art. We had a tour guide that went everywhere with us as well as specialized tour guides at the different museums and other historical sites. They are not a travel agency. You can not just contact them to arrange a trip.

 

[Halbleib1]

We've been getting them since DD was in 5th grade. Like I would let my 5th grader go to another country for 21 days! It is expensive, I think my DD's friend who went to Alasksa paid close to $6000. The one we checked out to Australia & 2 other countries was $7000. DD's friends family is not wealthy be any means nor was she that smart so I think they just invite a lot of kids because many can't go. Another friend checked it out when her son was invited to Japan (they are part Japanese) and she said the family trip cost less! DD's friends trip was wonderful (they never go anywhere on vacations so it was a real treat to her) another friend (an older group 14 yr) were allowed to drink in Germany and were not very well supervised as they went out on their own a lot.
These were People to People Ambassador programs and the invites were very fancy with a seal! Supposedly this program was thought up by a former president.

We were allowed to drink but only during our home stay time and if we were of age according to the laws of the country we were in. If we were caught drinking any other time we would have been on the next plane home at our expense. In Austria the legal drinking age is 16. So anyone that was 16 or above was allowed to drink during their home stay if the family they were staying with allowed it. The family I was with allowed it if we went out to a club but did not allow it in the home. Probably because they had a 10 year old in the home. That being said the culture of drinking is much different than it is here. We had one drink the entire evening we were out.

I would only allow my child to go if I knew they were responsible and could handle the situations that they would encounter.

 

[Halbleib1]

Those who say that this program has nothing to do with grades or leadership experience are right. I really don't know how the program obtains names; I never nominate anyone.

A couple of my students have taken part in these programs, and without exception they've said they were WONDERFUL. But then, what's not wonderful about going to a foreign country and seeing all sorts of really cool things while meeting new friends? I do think the programs are worthwhile and safe. Are they educational? Yeah, in the sense that all travel is educational, but they're not equivalent to a classroom experience. They're educational in the same way that summer camp is educational -- that is, that the teen learns some independence. College admissions boards and scholarship committees will not find these trips impressive.

It's significant to note that these trips are extremely expensive. With a little research, you could just about take your whole family on a similar trip for the cost of these trips. I personally can't justify the cost.

I actually found it much more educational than learning out of a text book. We got to see the things and places we were learning about in person vs in a text book. A much nicer way of learning than just reading about it. We went to the Louvre, The Palace of Versailles, as well as the Eiffel Tower in France. We went to a concentration camp in Austria where we walked in the footsteps of those that were taken there during ww2 and saw the sleeping quarters as well as the gas chamber and cremation stoves. The gas chamber doubled as a shower so those that were sent there were not even aware what was going on as they thought they were going for showers. We met with a survivor of the holocaust the next day in Germany. She told us her story of survival as well as how her family was seperated from her and put to death. That was a very powerful story that has stayed with me all this time. I will never forget her saying: And if you think that it can not happen again think again because it can. And the sad thing is it was going on in various places around the World even than and still is today. We also got to see Mozarts birthplace as well as the setting for the Sound of Music in Austria. As well as many more historical places in Germany, Italy and Switzerland.

 

[Halbleib1]

That's not technically true. We had a friend that tried to nominate her son so he could go with his friends and he wasn't accepted. That I do know for a fact because the mother and son were extremely disappointed.

I had no idea though that they try to sell it by saying that Obama is involved. We never had any communications that said any president approved it except for its founder. People to People was founded by Eisenhower and his granddaughter is the current CEO.

It is still just a student travel organization, but a good one.

Every President since has been the honorary Chairman of the organization. And I am sure the President is probably aware of it. How involved is he with it I don't know.

 

[Halbleib1]

We've used two student travel groups. People to People was great, top notch. EF Tours was terrible and a waste of money. Neither trip was taken as anything but an opportunity to travel and learn. For those thinking it will help get into college, I seriously doubt it would.

All of the information that I received never claimed that it would help get you into college. They do offer travel opportunities for college aged students but they do not say it will help get you into college. It does not hurt to have it on your record though. It shows real life experience with other cultures.

 

[Halbleib1]

With the exception of the Washington, DC Leadership Summit, People to People is a glorified and overpriced travel agency for students. They recruit chaperones by giving teachers free travel. They are generally a good experience, but not really leadership driven. The DC one includes access to some amount of contact with government staffers who are used to giving educational talks to kids and it's usually good for kids in 5th-8th grades, typically a shorter trip as well.

The chaperones have to pay for their trip. It is not free. I know because my dad wanted to go with my group as a chaperone but it was too expensive for us both to go.

 

[Trek Girl]

I was a people to people student ambassador in the summer of '98, the summer before my sophomore year of high school. It was one of the most awesome experiences of my life to date! Like summer camp, but in foreign countries. Our group went to Belgium, France, England, the Netherlands, and Germany, with a home stay with a family in Germany. It was expensive, maybe $5000 or so back then, but it was something I really wanted to do, and I was one of those kids who never asked for much, so my parents found a way to make it happen. It's a great opportunity, but if you already travel internationally as a family, I would go that route instead, as you'll probably get more for your money. My family always took summer trips, but never overseas, so for me it seemed like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

 

[teacherforhi]

The chaperones have to pay for their trip. It is not free. I know because my dad wanted to go with my group as a chaperone but it was too expensive for us both to go.

Your dad tried to go. He wasn't invited as a chaperone. I've gotten multiple letters over the years asking me to nominate students. It also offers me a free trip if enough of my students sign up for the program. And yes, I throw the letter away.