Our Wildwood, Volume 53

Learning Without Borders In a world where we can text, Zoom, and Google our way across borders in seconds, it’s easy to feel connected to other cultures—but real understanding takes more than a Wi-Fi signal. That’s where Wildwood’s International Community Involvement (ICI) program comes in. Each spring, ICI offers upper school students the chance to live, work, and learn abroad—immersing themselves in local communities and cultures far beyond their own. This year marked a major milestone for the program: for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, Wildwood was able to support two separate ICI trips—one to Guatemala, and another to Nepal. In Guatemala, students helped construct homes for low-income families, while their classmates in Nepal worked with two schools, providing support in the classroom with English instruction, music, reading, visual arts, and enrichment. “Each group made a difference by flexing their collaboration muscles,” said Director of Upper School Robin Follet, who chaperoned the Guatemala trip. “As someone new to Wildwood, traveling with our students was an incredible way to see the school’s values in action. I watched students step out of their comfort zones, engage deeply with the community, and return with a greater sense of empathy and perspective.” TOP: Students on the ICI trip to Nepal practice reading and writing with local students. BOTTOM: Students work together to build homes for families on the ICI trip to Guatemala.

OWW SUMMER 2025

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