Global Explorers Compass
Twenty middle school students and one educator from KIPP DC: AIM Academy just returned from a life-changing expedition to Costa Rica thanks to Travel Channel and Global Explorers. More than simply a tour of Costa Rica, the Global Explorers educational travel program emphasizes science, culture, and community service while developing skills such as problem solving, collaboration, self-awareness and communication. In addition to a ten-day expedition, the students have been studying Costa Rica for a semester and will be required to develop their own community service initiatives in Washington, D.C. upon their return. Travel Channel staff members also hosted a pre-travel media skills retreat that equipped the group to bring their travel stories home in fun and exciting ways.
Aleisha Maye, the participating Spanish teacher from KIPP DC: AIM Academy, says “The Compass Program has truly been the experience of a lifetime for my students. Every one of my students has grown more on this trip to Costa Rica than in years of classroom time.”
KIPP DC:AIM Academy, located in Washington, D.C., is a public charter school for grades 5-8. More than 80% of KIPP students qualify for free or reduced lunch and the student population is 100% African American. Student proficiency in reading and math far outpaces District averages.
Johnice Patterson exemplifies the type of student the Compass program targets. A 13-year old student with a high GPA, Johnice says “In Costa Rica, I have learned that others live differently than we do in DC and we need to go places to see and experience how they live. This experience makes me thankful for what I have and I look forward to sharing that with others at home.”
Maye adds “I am so excited to return back to DC and begin to see how this program’s lasting impacts will manifest in my students' commitment to their education, service in their community and their conceptions of global citizenship.”
“Global Explorers and Travel Channel understand the power of travel and the value of seeing and learning from new and different cultures. Global Explorers strives to provide students of all backgrounds with once in a lifetime opportunities to explore the world,” said GEx Executive Director David Shurna.
“The student travel industry is more than just a field trip to the Statue of Liberty,” says Bizarre Foods host Andrew Zimmern. “That's important, and has its place, but with our planet experiencing dangerous ecological, social, political and economic shape shifting, the future of our global community depends on the young people of the world. And if we expect them to rise to the occasion and lead us into the 21st Century then we better make sure they understand the world. And the only way to do that is to let them see it.”
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