Wanna check out if the stars at night, are big and bright...deep in the heart of Texas? Whether you are looking for an international get away or an in country jaunt, Austin, TX, the "live music capital of the world," is waiting for you! Cultural Embrace welcomes you to our hometown as we team up with local organizations and charities to combine educational and humanitarian work with fun, social, and multi-cultural activities. 

We have a variety of activities for different participants that want to embrace Austin and America. For non-native English speakers, we have designed a curriculum that will simultaneously teach and improve your English language skills, while increasing leadership, intercultural, and interpersonal skills. The English lessons will emphasize vocabulary, diction, pronunciation, grammar, reading, writing, and conversation.  For native English speakers, we have provided you an option to either choose 20 hours of Spanish language lessons, music lessons, or community involvement through service and volunteer work. All participants will unite together for social, recreational, and intercultural activities, with emphasis on college preparation and campus visits, leadership and community involvement workshops. Themed activities will focus on the following topics: Education & College Preparation, Healthy Living, Eco/Conservation, Leadership, and Creativity. 

Each workshop will address various social issues, and then several afternoons, the group will visit various centers and agencies to help Austin's community, while learning, growing, and developing ideas to lead your own community efforts upon return. Cultural Embrace partners with several local non-profits, churches, and advocacy programs in the underprivileged East Austin community, and together we will start locally to impact globally. 

Evening and weekend activities will consist of social, recreational, and cultural activities with of course, local Tex-Mex and other international fare! All housing, meals, and ground transportation will be included. Housing will either be shared rooms in hotels, hostels, or carefully selected host families. Please note that host families are limited, and provided on a first-come, first-served basis. Come and discover why Austin has been ranked as one of the most live-able city year after year, and embrace the opportunities to "Keep Austin Weird".   

If you are an international participant interested in coming to Austin for ESL lessons, Leadership, College Prep, and Service Work, please click here. (pdf)

If you are a participant interested in coming to Austin for Spanish or music lessons and/or Service Work, Leaderhip, and College Prep, please click here. (pdf)  

"Discover the Similarities - Share the Differences!" 

Language & Cultural Lessons
ESL: 20 hours of lessons per week for non-native English speakers wishing to improve their language skills. Lessons will be taught by experienced and trained teachers who will emphasize vocabulary, diction, pronunciation, grammar, reading, writing, and conversation. Group size varies from 6-12 participants, dependent on language level.

Spanish or Music: 10 hours of Spanish or music lessons available per week for the participants that do not need ESL training. Lessons will be taught by experienced and trained teachers. Group size will be determined by language level and number of students, but a maximum of 5 students per group. Music lessons available in guitar or vocal training. Participants must bring their own guitar. Participants are encouraged to combine Spanish or music lessons with additional service work hours; or you may opt to take additonal Spanish or music lessons for an extra charge.

Service Work
Participants will work together with local non-profits, agencies, churches, and advocacy groups to increase awareness, and improve the living conditions of at-need communities. Social issues that will be addressed to the community and in your program are: education & literacy, homelessness & poverty, healthy living & fitness, and eco/conservation. Each day, we will address an issue in our workshops and discuss ways of how we may be better local and global citizens for such causes. We will work as a team to combat some of these issues, and encourage our participants to take action beyond Austin, and be involved with causes in your own community. 

Service work examples are: volunteering at shelters, clothes and food pantries, tutoring and sharing cultural similarities and differenes to underprivileged children and adults, cultivating sustainable agriculture, designed to help teach at-need youth in Austin and our participants of ways to farm, sell, and donate healthy foods. Our service projects will connect you with local projects to increase your awareness and leadership, entrepreneurial, and life skills, and remind you how fun, easy, important, and rewarding it is to give back to your community. 

Social & Recreational Activities
A wide variety of daily social and recreational activities will be made available to all participants. Whether it is a dip in Barton Springs pool, one of the most popular swimming holes in the city, or a night of bowling, movies, live music, or dancing...you will be enjoying your nights as much as your mornings. 

H.U.G. Austin Offers:

• A first-hand experience to see and improve the communities in Austin
• An opportunity to broaden your perspective and world views
• A useful, practical, and hands-on approach to improve various skills (English, Spanish, music)
• Opportunity to learn Austin's lifestyles and community initiatives as well as other cultural activities (ie: music, language, crafts, dance, etc)
• Memorable experiences while traveling and experiencing one of the most 'live-able' cities in USA
• The ability to make lifelong friends from around the globe
• International work and cultural experiences that strengthen your resume
• A great way to develop and support your self-confidence and interpersonal skills

Cultural Embrace Includes:

• Language or Music Lessons
  20 hours of ESL classes for non-English speaking participants.
  10 hours of Spanish or music classes for English speaking participants (if desired)
• Accommodations
  Basic, clean & comfortable housing is included in your program. Housing varies between shared rooms in clean, comfortable, and conveniently located hotels, dormitories, or carefully selected host families. Host families are limited during summer season. Shared rooms may vary from 2-4 people.
• Meals
  At least two meals a day are included with your program. Meal plans will depend per project and destination, usually a family style or cafeteria meal plan. Dietary and allergy restrictions will be met with advanced notice.
• Community Involvement & Service Work
  Group service work will be planned so participants may use their teambuilding and leadership skills, interact with the locals, and give back to an underserved community. 
• Ground Transportation & Local Assistance
  Air-conditioned ground transportation will be included from the first meet and greet at the airport to your departure. Transfers to your workshops, classes, service projects, social & recreational activities will be included, as well as an excursion to use and practice the public transportation in America. 
• Orientation & Training
  You will receive an orientation and training of the program, and training of your responsibilities and tasks for your week, service project, and activities. 
• Travel Insurance: Basic Major Medical Coverage
  Our policy provides basic medical coverage on your program.
• Cultural Embrace Cultural Kit
  You will receive useful information prior to your departure to prepare you for your adventure abroad.
• Full-time pre-departure and local support
  You will have full-time adult supervision throughout your program in Austin, with experienced teachers for language & music lessons, and workshop facilitators.
• Visa assistance (if applicable)
  Cultural Embrace will assist you with the process to obtain the proper visa, but we have no control or guarantees of government issuances and visa availability. Please note that we are not a visa designating company, and will not be able to process J-1 or F-1 visas.

• 15-30 years old. Students under the age of 18 must have parent consent and must be accompanied by an adult supervisor. 
• Enjoy working and serving others.
• Open to foreign cultures and living abroad.
• Be independent and mature, yet capable of working in groups.
• Maintain good atendance for all activities and lessons.

-Fee includes: room & board, language/music lessons, workshops, traveler's insurance, ground transportation, full-time pre-departure and local support
-Prices listed in US Dollars, and AUD$, CAN$, £,€ accepted

1. Obtain Cultural Class-Austin Application Forms & Procedures documents in one of three ways: 

(a) Download the forms: Application (pdf) and International H.U.G. Austin Program Details (pdf) OR U.S. Resident H.U.G. Austin Program Details (pdf).

(b) Fill out an online application request form and the forms will be e-mailed to you within 2-3 days.

(c) Call Cultural Embrace at 1-512-469-9089 or Skype: Cultural.Embrace to have the forms mailed to you in 3-5 days.

2. Read the instructions carefully and complete all forms.

3. Submit your completed application packet to:

CULTURAL EMBRACE
7201 Bill Hughes Road
Austin, TX 78745 USA 

Completed packet should include:

• Program in Austin Application
• Signed Program Agreement 
• Resume/CV
• Cover Letter explaining why you want to join this program
• Copy of your Bachelor's degree and other significant credentials 
• Copy of your passport (information page only) 
• Two Letters of Recommendations (your referrer can send it directly to us via post or email) 
• Two passport-size photos (with your name written on the back)
• One full-length picture 
• Police background check
• Medical report  testifying to your physical and mental fitnessUS$250 non-refundable deposit (credited towards your program fee)

Upon receipt of your application, a Cultural Embrace coordinator will contact you for a 20-30 minutes phone interview. Once we accept you in to our program, you will receive an invoice for the remainder of your program fee. In order for us to contact our local partners to start your placement process, we require at least 50% of your program fee.

We recommend submitting your application and program fee at least 12-16 weeks prior to your desired start date in order for us to organize and arrange your H.U.G. trip.

*Cultural Embrace requires an expedited application fee for those applying 12 weeks or less before the desired date of departure. Applications received 8-12 weeks prior to desired departure date will be charged $150. Applications received less than 8 weeks before the desired departure date will be charged $250.

For any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@culturalembrace.com or you can call us at 1-512-469-9089 or Skype: Cultural.Embrace.