Simply fill out our quick enrollment form. No deposit required. No pressure.

Then we email a more detailed application that helps us learn more about your needs and interest.

Later finalize your dates and purchase your flights.

Our one payment is May 10th (payment is based on length of stay).

Students and parents are e-mailed our pre-departure newsletter on flights, packing, what to expect, our school information, host family living.

We don't teach students to use Spanish—we give them a reason to. Through friendships, local high schools, host families, and village life, Spanish becomes a natural part of every day in a truly authentic Costa Rican experience.

Our Story

In 1998, parents at our original partner high school in Madison, Wisconsin, wanted more than a traditional language trip. They wanted their students to gain real-world Spanish experience, confidence, and independence.

At that meeting, Nicaragua educator Ilba Prego offered her hometown as the starting point for something different. What began with one community has since welcomed students from 40 U.S. states, 102 American high schools, five Canadian schools, and one school in the United Kingdom.

Though our program moved two hours south to our Costa Rican partner schools, our mission has remained the same from day one. This exchange isn't about tourism or textbook Spanish—it's about young people stepping beyond the familiar, embracing new experiences, and discovering just how capable they really are.

Immersion transforms the way students see the world. It creates genuine connections with people, culture, and place. Spanish is no longer just a subject to study—it becomes the key to friendships, shared experiences, and belonging to something real. No matter Spanish level each student is supported based on individual needs and interests.

Tourism is different. It entertains, but from a distance. The experience is designed only around the visitor.

Immersion invites students to step beyond the role of tourist and experience life from the inside.

Who is the in-country director, will they be living nearby and how much experience do they have? Our director Ilba Prego has been coordinating youth exchanges in Central America for 26 years, a recognized community leader with decades of high school and university program development. Ilba supervises all aspects of the program from excursions to high school sessions, host families and transportation.

Every host family is recommended by the director of our high school. Host Families must have a student in the schools. Each home is inspected and family recieves an orientation on our standards and safety protocols. The host family is located within walking distance of schools, town center, and program staff. Each family provides a caring home environment, healthy home-cooked meals, laundry, family outings and celebrations.

Visiting students are special guests of our two high schools.

Students are part of the school as non-credited, so they enjoy a choice of classes from Spanish, art, physical education, industrial arts, cooking, dance, English Converstaion. Students also enjoy special programs in cultural and environmental projects. Our schools also provide music and sports participation.

The school environment is very open, relaxed and very sociable. Our past students really thrive on the interaction and the opportunity to share common interests.

I know how it feels, because I've felt it too — sending my own child off for a year long exchange, wondering if I'd done enough to keep them safe. I also felt it, once, as a young student stepping onto a plane alone. That feeling never really leaves you, and it's exactly why we care so much about getting this right.

Your child's wellbeing isn't a policy to us — it's personal. We watch over every student the way we'd want someone to watch over our own: paying attention to the small things, catching problems early, and being there the moment something feels off.

So please, ask us anything. There's no question too small when it's about your child. We're always available and look forward to hearing from you.

Director, Ilba Prego

Large student tour companies offer “aid” while still making a huge profit. Volume travel does not benefit communites, it’s just for big business.

All of our costs stay and benefit our community.

We are not a profit business: Your costs go to support school programming, overseas emergency health, host family, excursions, 2 small administrative salaries, transportation, tutors and student ambassador stipend, sports equipment, and school uniforms.

Alabama
Mountain Brook High
Arizona
Tucson: Catalina Foothills H.S., Flowing Wells H.S.
California
Berkeley high School
San Diego: Canyon Crest H.S.
Sunnyvale: Fremont High
Encino: Oakwood Secondary
Fort Jones: Etna H.S.
FootHill High School (SFO)
Henry Gunn
La Jolla: Francis Parker 
Loyola (Beverly Hills)
Everest High (Menlo Park)
Los Angeles: View Park Prep Charter
​Alexander Hamilton High
Larkspur: Redwood H.S.
San Anselmo: Sir Francis Drake High
Sequoia H.S.
St. Helena: St. Helena H.S.
St. Vincent DePaul, (San Carlos)
Sunnyvale: Wilcox High
Oakland: Bishop O'Dowd, Bentley School
Consumnes Oaks
El Granada: Half Moon Bay H.S.
Santa Rosa: Maria Carrillo H.S. Montgomery 
Albany: Albany H.S
Orinda: Miramonte H.S.
Orinda Academy
Mission Hills: Laguna Hills High
Santa Barbara, Midland
Redland: Redland H.S.
Novato: Novato H.S.
Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, H.S.
Santa Cruz: Santa Cruz H.S
Palo Alto: Castilleja School
San Francisco: Lowell H.S., Lincoln High School
SF University high school, Jewish Community High
Colorado
Legacy High
Connecticut
Fairfield: Fairfield Warde H.S
Weston: Weston H.S.
Green Farm: Green Farm Academy
Farmington: Miss Porters School
Branford: Branford H.S.
Georgia
Atlanta: 
Druid Hills High School
Athens: Clarke Central High
Decatur: Decatur H.S.
Marietta: Pace Academy, Wheeler High
Buckhead: Morgan County H.S.
Hawaii:
Mid-Pacific, Honolulu
Illinois:
Aurora: Metea Valley High
​Chicago Area: Highland Park H.S., Whitney Young, Latin School of Chicago, Oak Park River Forest High School, Evanston Township H.S.
University of Chicago Laboratory School, New Trier High, Walter Payton College Prep, Saint Ignatuis College Prep, St. Scholastic Academy
Deerfield: Deerfield H.S.
Edwardsville: Edwardsville H.S.
Rockford: Keith Country Day School
Florida
Tallahassee: Rickards High
Bradenton: Braden River H.S
Miami: Miami Country Day School
Maine:
Edmunds: Washington Academy
Maryland: Baltimore: Baltimore School for the Arts
Sparks: St. Pauls School for Girls<br>
Potomac: Richard Montgomery High School 
Stevenson: St. Timothy School
Massachusetts
Boston: Boston High School, The Winsor School, Boston Latin 
Belchertown: Pioneer Valley Performing Arts H.S.
Arlington: Arlington High school, Belmont H.S., 
Beaver Country Day School
Groton: Lawrence Academy
​Falmouth Academy
Lexington: Lexington H.S.
Milton: Milton H.S.<br>
Newton: Newton South High, Newton North High<br>
Sharon: Sharon High School<br>
Shelburne: Mohawk Trail Regional H.S.<br>
Wellesley: Dana Hall School<br>
Worcester: Doherty Memorial H.S.<br>
Winchester: Cambridge School of Weston
Webster: Bartlett High
Westboro: Westboro H.S.
Weston: Cambridge School of Weston
Michigan
Ann Arbor: Huron High
Traverse City: Traverse City Central H.S
Walled Lake: Walled Lake Western
Minnesota
Brooklyn Park: Totina-Grace H.S.
Coon Rapids: Coon Rapids High 
St.Paul: Central High
Edina: Edina High School
Woodbury: Saint Thomas Academy
Missouri
St. Louis: Mehlville H.S., Ladue Horton Watkins H.S.
Columbia: Rockbridge High
New Hampshire
Northwood: Coe Brown Academy
Durham: Oyster River H.S
Haverhill: Oliverian School
New Jersey
Wardlaw Hartridge
Wayne Hills
Summit: Summit H.S.
Demarest: Demarest H.S.
​Highland Park
Millburn: Millburn H.S
Blairstown: Blairs Academy
Lawrenceville: Lawrenceville Academy
Princeton: Princeton High
New Mexico
Santa Fe: Santa Fe High
nex+Gen Academy (Alburquerque)
New York
New York City: Bard High School, NYC Lab School, St. Johnsbury
Beacon School, BHSEC Manhattan
Brooklyn: Brooklyn Friends, Berkeley Carroll, Brooklyn Technical
Ardsley: Ardsley H.S.
Bedford Hills: Fox Lang H.S.
Scarsdale: Edgemont H.S.
Pittsford: Pittsford Sutherland High
Buffalo: The Park School of Buffalo
New Paltz High
Nyack: Nyack High School
Fayetteville: Fayettevill-Manlius H.S.
Katonah: Miss Porters School
​Rochester: Brighton High
Stuyvesant High School
Spencerport: Spencerport H.S.
Boiceville: Onteora High
Wellington C. Mepham High School (Bellmore)
North Carolina
Carrboro High
Chapel Hill: East Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill
​Charlotte: Myers-Park High School
Durham: Durham Academy, Insight Co-Learning
Green Hope (Cary)
​Raleigh Charter
Raleigh: Enloe High School
Triangle Math & Science (Cary)
Wood Charter (Chapel Hill)
North Dakota: 
Minot: Minot H.S.
Ohio
Cincinnati: Princeton High,
Walnut Hills H.S.
Oklahoma
Tulsa: Edison Prep 
Oregon
Eugene: South Eugene H.S.
Beaverton High
Sheldon High (Eugene)
​Portland: West Linn High school, Franklin High
Pennsylvania
Easton: Easton Area High school
Philadelphia: St. Joseph's Academy
Middletown: George School
York: York Surburban High
Pittsburgh: Upper Saint Clair H.S.
Merion Station: Friend’s Central H.S.
Yardley: Lawrenceville High
Paoli: Delaware Valley Friends
Media: Penncrest H.S.
Rhode Island
Providence: Wheeler School, Classical H.S.
Portsmouth: Portsmouth Abbey School
Tennessee
Johnson City: Science Hill High School
Memphis: Lausanne Collegiate School, St. Mary’s Episcopal 
Chattanooga: Baylor School
Brentwood: Brentwood H.S.
Texas
Houston: Memorial High School, St. Thomas High
Austin: S.F. Austin High
Woodlands: The John Cooper School
Vermont 
Burlington: Burlington High School
Hinesburg: Champlain Valley H.S.
Virginia
Arlington: Yorktown H.S., 
Washington- Lee H.S.
Charlottesville: Tandem Friends, Charlottesville H.S.
Great Falls: Langley High
Springfield: West Springfield High
Mclean: Oakcrest School
Bristow: Stonewall Jackson H.S.
Williamsburg: Jamestown H.S.
Alexandria: Thomas Jefferson Science & Technology
Reston: South Lakes H.S.
U.S. Virgin Islands
St. John, Gifft Hill School
Washington, D.C.
Georgetown Visitation H.S.
Edmund Burke H.S.
Mclean School of Maryland
Washington
Seattle: Seattle Academy, Nathan Hale H.S. Garfield H.S.
Bainbridge Island: Bainbridge H.S.
Bellevue: Bellevue High, The Overlake School
Mount Vernon: Mount Vernon High school
Redmond: Overlake School
Kingston: Kingston H.S.
Shoreline: Shorewood H.S.
​Tacoma: Mount Tahoma High
West Virginia 
Parkersburg: Parkersburg H.S.
Wisconsin
Madison Area schools: Madison West, Madison East, Madison Memorial, Middleton, Edgewood, Monona Grove, Madison Lafollette, Shabazz H.S.
Galesville: Gale-Ettrick-Tremp H. S.<br>
Milwaukee: Shorewood H.S.
Columbus: Columbus H.S.<br>
Washington Island: Washington Island High
Johnson Creek: Johnson Creek High
Verona: Verona High school
Mequon: Homestead High
River Falls: River Falls H.S.
West Salem: West Salem H.S.
Cedarburg: Cedarburg H.S.
Canada
St. John’s: Holy Heart H.S.
Edmonton: Ross Sheppard<br>
Victoria: Reynolds Secondary
Toronto: Green High School
Toronto: Earl Haig Secondary
Port Moody, BC: Heritage Woods
United Kingdom
Marymount International School London
La Sainte Union

Dates can be changed up to 3 weeks before arriving. Payment remains May 10th.

Cancel before May 10th at no cost.

After May 10th til program start date 50% of payment is refunded.

After program start date: no refund, however full or a % of missed cost can be credited towards the following summer.