Frequently Asked Questions

Staff-to-student ratio is 1:7 for ages 12–13 and 1:10 for ages 14–18. This ratio holds for on-site activities and overnight stays, and an Impact OG staff member accompanies every leg of travel in between — students are never handed off without supervision. Every trip has a named on-site lead: the Program Director for Future Leaders Program trips, or the assigned trip lead for CAS Program trips, introduced to parents before departure.

Program fees include accommodation, all meals during the trip, in-country transport, program activities and partner/service-project fees, and on-site Impact OG staff. They don't include international or domestic flights to the trip's starting point, travel insurance, personal spending money, or visa fees where applicable. A full cost breakdown is provided per trip once dates and destination are confirmed — reach out through the contact page for current pricing.

Every activity on an Impact OG trip is mapped to one or more CAS strands — Creativity, Activity, Service — as it's planned, not after the fact. Students keep a short daily log, signed off by the on-site lead, and each trip closes with a written reflection. At the end of the trip, families and school CAS coordinators receive a CAS Verified summary documenting the hours and strand breakdown, ready to submit directly to the coordinator.

Every trip has a staff member trained in first aid and basic emergency response, a documented medical protocol, and a pre-trip medical and emergency-contact form for every student. Staff carry a list of the nearest hospitals and clinics for each destination and are briefed on any individual student medical needs before departure. Impact OG follows a written safeguarding policy covering staff conduct, reporting, and escalation, and all staff working directly with students go through a background and reference check before joining a trip.

Parents get a same-day update for every day of the trip — photos and a short recap — sent through a private group channel (WhatsApp, typically) set up before departure. The on-site lead's direct number is shared with parents for anything urgent outside that daily update, and a fuller wrap-up goes out at the end of the trip.

CAS hours logged and verified on an Impact OG trip count directly toward the IB Diploma's CAS requirement, with documentation ready for a school's CAS coordinator to review and approve. For non-IB applicants, the same verified activity record — specific projects, hours, and skills — works as concrete material for the activities section of university applications (Common App, UCAS, and similar), which tends to carry more weight than an unverified summer description.

Future Leaders Program is open to ages 14–18; the CAS Program is open to ages 12–18. Staffing ratios are adjusted by age group — 1 staff member for every 7 students aged 12–13, and every 10 students aged 14–18 — so younger and older students on the same trip are never supervised at the same ratio.

Comfortable, vetted accommodation booked in advance for every trip — 4-star hotels or the closest local equivalent, plus real meals rather than packed lunches. Service work is real, but students aren't roughing it to do it.

Every Impact OG trip runs with a minimum group size of 25 students. That minimum exists so a community partner can commit real time and a real project to the group, rather than improvising something for a handful of visitors.