BRATTLEBORO — World Learning played host to nearly 70 Mexican high school students this summer as part of new exchange designed to promote a more law-abiding culture in Mexico.
They came from all over Mexico - from small towns in the green state of Morelos, from the mining state of San Luis Potosi, and from Sonora, Jalisco, Guanajuato. They also came from cities like Veracruz, Tijuana, and the Federal District of Mexico. Their desire to address social issues, including substance abuse, gang violence, bullying, and community development, motivated these top students to apply for the five-week leadership program.
Known as Youth in Action or Jóvenes en Acción, the program is sponsored by the Bureau of Public Education in Mexico, the U.S. Department of State, and other private sector entities. Given its bi-national approach, its public-private partnership structure, its significant follow-up component, and its concentration on specific outcomes tied to key priorities in U.S.-Mexico relations, the program represents a new model in exchange and leadership programming.
For two weeks in Vermont, the students attended English training and workshops on leadership, civic education, and team building. They also visited local attractions like the Brattleboro Farmers' Market and Circus Smirkus, met local people, and interacted with other groups at World Learning - students from Iraq, Cyprus, Germany, Turkey, and the United States.
The students are now in one of five host cities: Baltimore, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, and Seattle. There they are living with local families, performing community service, and learning leadership and engagement skills relevant to various social issues.
The program concludes in Washington, D.C., where the students will meet government officials and develop action plans for service projects to carry out upon return home to Mexico.
When asked about their impressions of Vermont and the program, most students used words like “awesome,” “amazing,” “perfect,” “fun,” and “overwhelming” to describe their experience.
The students were exposed to new activities, such as the ropes course, which they found terrifying and exhilarating at the same time.
“This was the most challenging experience I ever had,” one student said. “To walk on a rope 33 feet high was something beyond my imagination.”
Others said the most transformative part of the program was meeting youth from other countries.
“I never imagined that, in Vermont, I would learn so much about Cypriots and Iraqis,” said one student. “I did not know that Cyprus is divided, the north with Turkish Cypriots and the south with Greek Cypriots. This is better than a history class.”
Another student found that Iraqi students are “really open-minded” and that they are “very similar to us. They like the same things, like American music, they have the same ideas about many issues, and they like to have fun!”
In addition to the Cypriot and Iraqi students, the Mexican youth also interacted with Americans. Together, they explored issues like conflict transformation, social change, public speaking, and networking. They also shared moments of fun while hiking, canoeing, and playing drums.
In the end, after all the inspiring lectures, the project planning, and the challenging activities, what remains most vivid in their minds is the opportunity to learn from people around the world and to share their culture with others.
This was what Donald B. Watt intended when he founded The Experiment in International Living in the 1930s, which would later become World Learning - to help “achieve peace through understanding.”