Students Can Earn Service Learning Hours on Ecuador Trip
Benjamin Wong
Editor-in-Chief
On April 8th at 6pm, Mr. Taubman-Walker is hosting an informational meeting about an opportunity to earn service learning hours while visiting Ecuador and learning about the local culture and life.
With the tagline of “See what happens when you make the world your classroom,” Education First Tours offers a myriad of international options for students to choose from.
“Imagine going down to the Amazon with people who never met an American or sat down to eat dinner with one, who have no idea about our technology,” Mr. Taubman-Walker said. “We’re going to live the way they do.”
The idea of the trip is to give students the opportunity to travel, while completing all of their service learning in a way that is both meaningful and memorable.
“I think this is an opportunity for students to do something they may never get to do in their lives.” Mr. Taubman-Walker said. “World travel changes your whole perspective. When you see the richness in Europe and the poverty in Central and South America, you begin to realize how blessed you are to be living here. But you can’t be told that. You have to experience it.”
The trip costs only $3,450 round trip, significantly less than the $4,700 needed for the Europe trip that was cancelled earlier in the year due to poor student interest.
“Europe trip didn’t happen for a few reasons.” Mr. Taubman-Walker explained. “One, it happens over the summer. Two, it’s very expensive. Three, it is just a trip. This time, I wanted to do something meaningful.”
The service learning portion of the trip is coordinated by the organization Me to We. As part of their celebration of world involvement, the organization plans a day to communicate the educating that they have done and books celebrities to come and speak on world travel, titled “We Day”. Should the students of American High School participate in the Ecuador trip, they will be part of the following year’s “We Day.”
“I came from the city, which has plenty of international flavors,” Mr. Taubman-Walker said. “There are lots of worldly experiences to be found in the city; however, when growing up in a bedroom city like Fremont, we become insulated to the outside world. This trip will give them [the students] the opportunity to change their perspective and not just be students in Fremont, but citizens of the world.”
An informational meeting about the tour will be held in Theater 50 on Tuesday, April 8th at 6pm.
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