Though only a month and a half has passed since the start of the school year, students have already begun the process of applying for Choate’s Global Program spring break trips. This year, the School is offering trips to a number of destinations including Cuba, southern Spain, and Mexico.
While each trip has its own focus, they all aim to expand students’ understanding of the diversity of the world around them. “The goal of our programs in general is to expose our students to a different culture, a different way of doing things, and a different way of life,” said Ms. Ashley Sinclair, Director of Global Studies.
On the trips, students will be encouraged to step out of their comfort zones as they immerse themselves in the unique food, language, and architecture of a different country. Students, moreover, will get the chance to interact with the locals of the countries they visit — more often than not, in the language that they study at Choate. “It helps [Choate students] think and expand their own bubble,” said Ms. Sinclair.
Ms. Jessica Cuni, a visual arts faculty member, and Dr. Yaser Robles, a fourth-form dean and history teacher, will chaperone this year’s trip to Cuba. While the trip focuses mainly on Cuban history, culture, and the contemporary arts scene, students will also take salsa and cooking lessons. Dr. Robles explained that the trip participants will be experiencing Cuba holistically by learning about important aspects of Cuba’s history: “Students will learn about the Cuban Revolution, foreign policy, U.S./Cuba relations, health care, education, economy, socialism, and the arts.”
Another spring break trip offered this year is one to southern Spain, which will be led by Ms. Eera Sharma, a Spanish teacher, and Mr. Georges Chahwan, the Language Department Head and Arabic teacher. “The goal of this trip is to give [the students] an understanding of the Moorish influence of Arab culture in southern Spain, not just through the language but also in architecture, food, and the daily lives of people who live there,” said Mr. Chahwan.
A notable change from last year’s trip to Spain is an addition to the trip’s geographic focus. Though students will still be spending time in Seville, the capital of Andalusia that is known for its iconic monuments like the Real Alcázar, and Granada, the home of the Alhambra, program leaders made the decision to add a visit to Toledo, the capital of La Mancha known for its medieval Arab, Christian, and Jewish monuments as well as for the Mudéjar architecture, to this year’s itinerary.
While the other trips are centered on cultural immersion, the trip to Mexico, organized through Simply Smiles and led by Director of Community Service Ms. Melissa Koomson, will focus mostly on community service. Throughout the week, participants will have the opportunity to interact with children and their families and give back to the surrounding community in Oaxaca. For example, the students who participated in the trip last year spent their mornings physically building a classroom for a new local kindergarten. In the afternoons, they spent time with the children in the Simply Smiles program.
Though all three March trips are unintentionally to Spanish-speaking countries, Ms. Sinclair explained that students without Spanish language ability are welcome to apply for any of the programs as well. She said, “We try to run our trips on a biannual basis, and these are the trips that were proposed by faculty this year. We are quite excited because our faculty are experienced and have had great reviews on these tours in the past.”
Students seem thrilled for the opportunity to spend their spring break experiencing and learning more about a new culture. “I want to go in depth experiencing the influence of art in Cuba and also broaden my artistic perception,” said Manuela Sepulveda ’23.
Beyond cultural immersion and community service, the trips are also designed to facilitate Choate students’ personal growth: “Each of the programs has its own set of learning outcomes, but it is part of our mission to ensure our experiences are designed to build independence, self-reliance, resourcefulness, and adaptability through exposure to new ways of living and thinking. They are intended to encourage students to reflect on their own background through the lens of the culture and attitudes of the host country,” concluded Ms. Sinclair.
