Global Engagement & Experiential Learning

Project Overview

As part of Cannon School’s mission to cultivate globally competent, socially aware students, I designed and launched a strategic partnership with TECHO, a respected youth-led nonprofit working to overcome housing insecurity in informal settlements across Latin America.

This partnership enabled the creation of a 6-day global engagement and service-learning experience, blending community collaboration, intercultural connection, and environmental exploration. The experience was intentionally structured as ethical, human-centered, and educational, moving beyond transactional volunteerism to foster humility, solidarity, and long-term global awareness.

Program Design

The program consisted of two integrated learning components:

1. Community Partnership & Service Learning — Chomes, Costa Rica

Students worked as TECHO Troopers, supporting a local family in building a transitional home using TECHO’s prefabricated emergency housing model.

Learning elements included:

• Collaborative home-building with TECHO leaders and the beneficiary family

• Opportunities for shared storytelling, cultural exchange, and reflective dialogue

• Exploration of housing inequity, community resilience, and youth-led social impact in Latin America

2. Eco-Tourism & Environmental Inquiry — Monteverde

The second half of the trip immersed students in the Monteverde Cloud Forest, one of the world’s most ecologically rich environments.

Activities included:

• Herpetology tour

• Coffee production and sustainability workshop

• Cloud forest hike & canopy experience

This component connected environmental systems with culture, community, and the ethics of tourism.

TECHO Chapter at Cannon School

To extend the impact beyond the trip itself, I designed and launched the TECHO Chapter at Cannon, a student association dedicated to:

• Continuing global engagement learning

• Developing student leadership in equity-focused initiatives

• Organizing fundraising campaigns to support future TECHO builds

• Hosting awareness events on poverty, housing rights, and social justice across Latin America

• Creating a sustained platform for students to remain involved in TECHO’s mission throughout the school year

This transformed the trip from a standalone experience into a year-long civic engagement pathway.

My Role

I led the design and coordination of the entire program, from conceptualization to execution:

• Built the partnership with TECHO’s U.S. and Latin American teams

• Designed learning objectives rooted in global competence

• Developed pre-trip curriculum and reflection activities

• Coordinated travel logistics, safety protocols, and local partnerships

• Created family communications and student recruitment materials

• Established the TECHO Chapter at Cannon, including its mission, leadership structure, and annual programming

Impact

This program and the new student chapter:

• Positioned Cannon School as a partner in youth-led social impact across the Americas

• Provided students with a transformative, ethically grounded learning experience

• Fostered emerging student leaders committed to social justice

• Built a sustainable model for ongoing global engagement, not just a one-time trip

• Strengthened students’ cultural agility, empathy, and sense of global responsibility

The result is a holistic global engagement ecosystem—trip, leadership, learning, and sustained action.