The Application Process
Criteria
In order to be eligible for this program, applicants must meet all of the following criteria:
Applicants must have a pre-lingual bilateral hearing loss in the mild to profound range or a pre-lingual unilateral hearing loss in the moderate to profound range (degrees of hearing loss: Moderate: 41 to 55 dB; Moderately severe: 56 to 70 dB; Severe: 71 to 90 dB; Profound: 91+ dB).
Listening and Spoken Language must be the applicant’s primary mode of communication.
LOFT participants are typically ages 15 to 18. Eligible teens must have completed at least one year of high school by the time they attend LOFT and must be in high school at the time they apply in order to participate.
LOCATION AND DATES
AG Bell is pleased to be working towards welcoming teens to the 2024 LOFT program in Washington, D.C. Planning is underway for one, in-person session this summer.
Dates: July 24-28, 2024
Application Process
Applications will be accepted until midnight, march 6.
Submitting the Application
Applicants will be notified via email whether or not they have been selected for LOFT 2024. Applicants who are not selected for this year’s program are strongly encouraged to apply in future years.
PLEASE NOTE
Due to the popularity of this program, more applications are often received than can be accommodated in a given year. Submission of an application is not a guarantee for program participation.
Fees
The program fee for 2024 is $949 per registrant. This covers hotel lodging, all meals, snacks, activity fees, and ground transportation from arrival to departure. A credit card will be required to cover any incidental expenses the teen may incur at the hotel.
There is no cost to submit an application.
TERMS & CONDITIONS
Once accepted into the LOFT program, the following terms and conditions apply:
Session Assignment
One session of LOFT is being planned. Participants will be split into a freshman-sophomore group and a junior-senior group.
Information and Forms
Following acceptance into the LOFT program, parents and teens will receive an e-packet of information with links to forms to complete online. These forms must be completed by end of day at 11:59 p.m. EST on May 31, 2024.
LOFT Registration Fee – What it Covers and When it’s Due
The LOFT Registration Fee covers meals, snacks, activity fees and ground transportation during the program as well as lodging in a double room for the four nights of the LOFT program. Each teen will share a room with another participant of the same gender; roommates are assigned by AG Bell.
Please note LOFT is a sleep-away program. All participants are required to stay at the hotel for the program.
Payment is due to AG Bell by May 31, 2024. Payment by credit card or check is acceptable. If paying by check, credit card information is also required to cover any incidental expenses the teen may charge to the room. Payment Instructions will be given in the Acceptance Packages with information.
Cancellation/Refunds
Refunds for the LOFT program, less a $50 administrative fee, will be made only if cancellation is received in writing by June 9, 2024. No refunds will be issued for cancellations received after this date; this includes refunds due to illness, late arrival, weather conditions and/or other travel difficulties.
Air or Ground Transportation
Parents must arrange for and cover the cost of airfare to Washington, D.C. (Ronald Reagan National Airport - DCA) for their teen in coordination with the LOFT program arrival/departure schedule.*
For those within driving distance, parents may choose to drop off/pick up their teen at the hotel in coordination with the drop off/pick up schedule.
Communication Devices
Parents must equip their teen with a communication device with texting capabilities for communication with LOFT staff during pickup and drop off at the airport and in the event of an emergency.
The use of mobile phones and/or texting devices is not allowed during program activities (generally 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. local time). Teens are asked to limit the use of their mobile phones during lunch, dinner and free time. This is not to restrict communication with parents, rather to encourage the teens to interact personally with the other teens at the program. It is not acceptable for participants to play games on their phone or text friends back home during meals or free time.
Supervision
Participants are met at baggage claim at the airport or at the hotel. They are supervised during waking hours until they leave the program. Teens will remain with a LOFT staff member until they go through the security gate. A LOFT staff member will remain at the airport until the last teen’s plane has departed.
Curfews are in place during sleeping hours (generally 11:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.). Participants are not permitted to leave their room during curfew, except in the case of an emergency.* Room checks by LOFT counselors will take place within an hour of curfew.
*Each room is provided with one shared smoke detector and bed shaker alarm clock.
Participants are not allowed in any room other than their own during curfew. Boys and girls are not allowed in the same sleeping room at any time without the supervision of a LOFT counselor.
Participants will not be allowed to leave the hotel or activity areas at any time without the permission of a LOFT counselor. In the event that a participant needs to leave the activity premises, he or she will be accompanied by a LOFT counselor.
Parental Involvement
Parents are encouraged to communicate via phone or text with their teen outside of session/activity hours.
Parents may choose to accompany their teen to Washington, D.C. and vacation in the area.
Observation of the LOFT program or direct parental involvement on site (personal interaction with your teen, other LOFT teens or the hotel staff on behalf of your teen) is not permitted. In the event of a medical emergency, parents will be contacted immediately.
Dismissible Offenses
Possession and/or consumption of alcohol or illegal drugs by LOFT participants is strictly forbidden and will result in immediate dismissal from the program.
Possession and/or use of dangerous or unauthorized materials such as explosives, firearms, weapons or similar items by LOFT participants is strictly forbidden and will result in immediate dismissal from the program.
Blatant and persistent disrespect for counselors and/or other teens in the program will result in dismissal from the program.
Any expenses, travel or otherwise, associated with an early dismissal from the program will be the responsibility of the parent.1