Monthly Archives: October 2012

Global Citizens Network partners with World Savvy to offer the American Youth Leadership Program to Peru in summer 2013

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The American Youth Leadership Program (AYLP) is sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U. S. Department of State and World Savvy.  GCN and community partner, JIREH, in Tarapoto, Peru will collaborate to offer this exciting program to 16 U. S. High School Students and 3 U.S. Educators.

The one-month program offers an exploration of cross-cultural understanding, focused on food security and nutrition in Peru.  Following the program, participants will follow up through social action projects in their home communities.

Visit the World Savvy page (click here) to learn more about participant eligibility and application process.

All applications are due November 16, 2012.

For more information contact Laura Nuñez at 612-436-8274 or laura@globalcitizens.org

Gap Years – What to Know

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In recent years, studies have demonstrated that there is growing number of U.S.
high school graduates who are taking a year off, before enrolling in college. This
trend, traditionally popular in England and other European countries, is giving
U.S. students an opportunity to explore different cultures, communities and gain a
valuable experience.

To help decipher this growing trend and what constitutes a gap year, Valerie
Strauss, a reporter with the Washington Post, documented her conversation with
Laura R. Hosid, an expert on gap years at Vink Educational Placement Services, Inc,
in a recent post.

The conversations begins by first defining the term “gap year,” which has come
to “typically describe a year off between high school and college…[which offers] an
opportunity to travel, explore different interests, and gain experience and maturity
before beginning college.” Ms. Hosid continues by pointing out that “many students
choose to take a gap year because they see it as an opportunity to try something
new and take a break from formal schooling.” This new opportunity allows them to
expand their perspectives, gain new insights and formulate new skills that will help
them in college and throughout their professional careers.

In fact, Ms. Hosid notes that “a gap year can be an excellent opportunity to actively
purse an interest or passion” before pursuing that interest academically. In fact,
a 2011 New York Times article notes that data from Middlebury University’s own
statistics “demonstrated that average G.P.A for Middlebury students who took a
break – 35 people this year – was consistently higher than that of those who did not
[take a gap year].” Other institutions, such as Princeton University and University of
North Carolina, have set-up formal global gap year programs and fellowships.

The conversation also highlighted the different opportunities available to students
throughout their gap year. While most students “choose to spend their gap year in
structured programs volunteering abroad or in the United States,” others “piece
together different options to explore a range of interests.”

 

For more information or to see the Washington Post blog post:

The Washington Post – 9/21/2012

A Primer on Gap Years

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/a-primer-on-gap-years/2012/09/20/005d2a5c-033f-11e2-91e7-2962c74e7738_blog.html