Global Education

Through our Global Education program, students can experience diverse cultures and learn directly from local residents about customs, beliefs, history, art, politics, social issues, and daily life.

All trips are intentionally designed with an educational focus. For example, the trip to Ghana centered on how neo-colonialism impacts modern Ghana. By interacting with peers in Ghanaian educational institutions, our students learned about the challenges faced by rising generations there. The Nepal trip explored the cultures and religions of Nepal and examined the impact of COVID-19 on education and tourism. In Finland and the Baltic States, while the Finnish education system was one focus, our students also explored how location and geography affect history, architecture, transportation, and politics.

Global Education Philosophy

The Global Education Program fosters competencies in students, including communication and work with people who are culturally very different from themselves; respect for values and priorities of the many countries and cultures of the world; and understanding the interconnectedness of global systems—economic, social, cultural, racial, religious, technological, and ecological.

In addition to global education trips, the program is related to global competency efforts that occur on campus throughout the year.

Global Education is designed to empower students to lead efforts toward diversity, service learning, and global action, and this often begins on campus with student-led groups with an international focus

Cross-cultural communication, such as virtual exchanges, collaborative podcasting, and blogs, also help students see themselves as members of a larger community. Students benefit from interaction with international students and teachers visiting the school, and from faculty and staff with international, linguistic, and cultural experience.