Who is Xperitas?

Xperitas is a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Organization that has been providing students with educational language and cultural immersion experiences since 1972, coming up on 50 years! Xperitas was the brainchild of Jim Phalen and Bob and Edie Green, who at that time were World Language teachers in Minneapolis, MN. Because of these very special teachers and the decades of shared experience of two nonprofit organizations, Intercultural Student Experiences (ISE) and Global Citizens Network (GCN), we are here today.

The Xperitas difference starts with what motivates our organization. We are a community of lifelong intercultural learners, who believe in a better and more just world built on deeper levels of understanding of others. As a nonprofit organization we are mission-driven, motivated by the desire to transform lives through intercultural learning.

For five decades we have provided our teachers and students with a transformational educational experience. We share our founder's passion for creating the best language immersion travel programs. Our philosophy is that giving students an authentic experience outside of the classroom, within a culture other than their own, creates greater cultural competency, which is vital in an increasingly globalized world.

Our Mission

Transforming lives through shared global experience and intercultural learning.

Today, Xperitas is a leader in cross-cultural programs that embody authentic language and cultural immersion. In addition to experiencing the sites and speaking the target language, our celebrated Family Stay Experience®, delivers a deeper, more meaningful language and cultural exchange than other programs. Students stay with a volunteer local family, speaking the target language and experiencing daily life as a member of that community. This fusion of everyday language usage and living like a "temporary local" creates a dynamic for sharing, greater understanding and bringing language and culture to life! When surveyed, nine out of ten students consider this to be their favorite part of the trip. See what others are saying about Xperitas Language Immersion Programs.

Our programs are designed to inspire students to make personal connections with communities worldwide through world language immersion programs. Benefits of student immersion travel abroad reported to us by teachers, parents and the students themselves are as follows:

• A better understanding of language and the nuance of dialect
• Understanding language within the context of the culture
• Cultural competency in engaging with with others around the world
• Increased awareness of different perspectives 
• Personal growth in independance and self-sufficiency

Language Immersion Destinations 

Transforming Lives through Student Aid

Another way we transform lives is to make student language and cultural immersion as accessible as possible. Equity is not a new concept at Xperitas. As a nonprofit, we dedicate a portion of our proceeds to financial aid, scholarship and classroom grant programs. We provide one of the most robust financial aid programs in the industry. Our financial aid is awarded on a “needs based” sliding scale to ensure equitable distribution among our eligible student travelers who apply. Our scholarship programs are merit-based and all students are encouraged to participate. Over the past decade, we have awarded over a million dollars in aid to student travelers.

Learn About our Financial Aid Programs