This past summer, after months of careful planning and coordination, Lick-Wilmerding High School launched pilot Global Travel Programs, exploring Mexico City, the Chinese cities of Beijing, Xi’an and Shanghai, as well as Geneva and Montreux, in Switzerland. Through cultural immersion, collaboration and hands-on learning, students returned to campus inspired and eager to share their international adventures.
Ravi Lau ’92, the Global Program Coordinator for summer 2025, coordinated trip planning, helped select student participants and supported teachers’ proposals in collaboration with the past CFO, Jeanette Moore and Head of School Raj Mundra. Librarian Danielle Farinacci has now assumed this role for the coming years, intending to shape the future of LWHS’s global travel initiatives. This position reflects a continued commitment to global engagement, something deeply rooted in the school’s values. “Global citizenship has long been central to LWHS’s mission,” Mundra said.
The total budget was approximately $250K, which included significant support from the school for students on flexible tuition. Made possible by a generous anonymous donation—set to continue in 2026—the faculty-led trips allowed for cross-cultural understanding and fostered a deep sense of community among participants.
For over a decade, LWHS and The Drew School traveled to Senegal, establishing the Senegal Service Learning Project partnership with the villages of Keur Sadaro, Santhiou Mame Gor, Niokhob Guedj and Guedj Martin. Up to 60 students participated in a variety of service projects ranging from building desks to solar projects and constructing wells. The program paused due to Covid, and a planned return last year was canceled after a key partner withdrew.
When the Traditional Meets the Digital: Mexico City Summer Trip
Photo courtesy of Samu Cortez
Samu Cortez, Tech Arts Department Chair, organized and led the 10-day summer trip to Mexico City alongside co-chaperone, LWHS Math teacher José Perez. In partnership with Mexican architectural designer Dinorah Martínez Schulte, founder of Manufactura.MX and teacher of digital manufacturing at Universidad Iberoamericana, students engaged in a five-day workshop learning to blend traditional and digital manufacturing techniques through cultural immersion, lectures, demonstrations and team-based sessions. “My goal was to introduce Mexico through a different set of lenses, where technology, innovation and craft meet,” Cortez said.
The program was driven by Cortez’s deep connection to Mexico and his desire to share its rich culture, history and innovation. During the workshops, students applied the history and architecture they studied at Mexico City’s museums and landmarks to design a block using 3D print and CNC manufacturing technology. They used their 3D models to create silicone molds, and cast it using eggshell-based materials, all with the focus of sustainability.
“I learned that it is important to be considerate and culturally sensitive, keeping in mind the cultural significance behind design and architecture,” participant Claudia Cohn ’26 said. Participant Bryce Chung ’28, commented on the way the workshop allowed him to think with a different lens about design. “I learned about the ethics behind design and problems within industrial practices, which was something I had never thought about,” he said.
During a pre-trip the summer before, Cortez met with Schulte in person and toured many of the museums and sites students would visit on the trip. “I really enjoyed planning,” Cortez said. “I wanted to orchestrate the whole experience.” Throughout the trip, students and chaperones visited museums and sites, including El Palacio de Bellas Artes and the Anahuacalli Museum, even touring the Centro Nacional de las Artes. They visited Frida Kahlo’s Casa Azul, the ancient Teotihuacán ruins and woke up early the last day to experience sunrise in Xochimilco, where cheery locals recited eerie Mexican fables as they drifted along the canals. “We ended up with a great group that was really cooperative and just open to doing things,” Perez said.
They also explored Mexico City’s vibrant culinary scene, dining at spots like Expendio de Maiz, Panadería Rosetta and La Gruta, a unique restaurant set in a cave. Students tried their hand at making tortillas and chocolate, and sampled everything from street food to Michelin-star taquerías. “I really loved the delicious food and when we got to sit down to eat meals together and share time as a group,” Perez said.
Each day of the trip ended with a group check-out, where everyone shared their highlight, lowlight and something they learned. “I did love that at the end of every day, we got to talk and hear about things we enjoyed, finding random things to connect with other people,” Cohn said.
In preparation for next year’s program, Cortez is hoping to add another five days to the trip in order to visit Guanajuato and learn more about Mexico’s colonial history. Additionally, he hopes to collaborate with print makers to host another workshop for students and to visit cultural sites while there. “Mexico is very artistic, creative, and vibrant,” Chung said while reflecting on the pilot trip. “I appreciated the beautiful art I saw and enjoyed making strong friendships.”
LWHS China Trip
Photo courtesy of Avery Yang ’26
Min Larson, LWHS Mandarin teacher and Language Department Chair, led and organized the 12-day summer trip to China alongside co-chaperone, History teacher and Department Chair Emily Healy. Being LWHS’s first China trip in many years, the destinations were chosen to allow students to engage with China’s rich history and, at the same time, experience its modern development.
“Each city represents a different aspect of China’s identity. Beijing, the political center, highlighted the country’s long tradition of centralized governance and its role in shaping modern China. Xi’an, a historical capital, immersed students in ancient dynasties such as the Qin…and Tang dynasties. Finally, Shanghai, a dynamic megacity, gave students a firsthand view of China’s rapid modernization, economic growth and global connections,” Larson said.
She started planning two years ago, doing a scouting trip the previous summer and finalizing the trip’s logistics in the fall. For extra support, an organization of tour guides called Real Asia regarding places to visit and what to do. She credits Healy for her continued support “from beginning to the end.”
One of the many highlights of the trip was a bench-building project at a local farm in Xi’an that houses adults with cognitive disabilities. With limited supplies and tools, LWHS students collaborated with residents to successfully construct two sturdy benches. The memorable experience allowed students to use their creativity and skills to build something that would be used at the farm and gave them the opportunity to effectively communicate with locals. “I was able to use the Chinese I have been learning my whole life in an environment outside the U.S., while also picking up cultural practices and new words. Personally, I got a glimpse of what it will be like to live away from my family, which feels important with college coming up,” participant Ces Morell ’26 said.
Emma Yeh ’26 shared another beautiful moment, visiting the Great Wall of China. “I felt like it was a very unique experience for us, because it was raining that day, which meant not as many people were actually on the wall. So it was nice to be able to collectively experience its beauty as a group,” Yeh said. She described the trip as “exciting and memorable.”
Immersing Larson’s students in a culturally different class environment, the China Trip embodied LWHS’s Head, Heart and Hands philosophy by building empathy and developing global perspectives to interact with global communities. “In an increasingly interconnected world, present with many challenges,” Larson said, “our students need [language and cultural immersion] skills more than ever to serve as bridges between the two biggest economies in the world.”
Villars Summit: Switzerland Trip
Photo courtesy of Arman Anoshiravani
LWHS Science teacher Gillian Ashenfelter and Body-Mind Education teacher Erin Merk chaperoned students throughout an eight-day, sustainability-focused trip in Switzerland. The group attended a five-day symposium in the Swiss Alps, hosted by the Villars Institute—a nonprofit foundation established in 2022 that “fosters systemic change through intergenerational collaboration.” The summit’s interdisciplinary approach to artistic, cultural and educational activities primarily focused on biodiversity, planetary health and sustainable development.
Exposing youth to what sustainability looks like in fields such as business, finance, science and at a community level, the conference introduced students to professionals working in the front lines of climate action, showcasing the diverse ways they combat climate change and spread awareness. “We learned a lot about what it means to create meaningful change, and one thing that really stood out to me was the focus on the importance of narratives,” Arman Anoshiravani ’26 said. “There is often a focus on the negative, doom side of climate change… and I [took away that] creating positive, hopeful narratives… is ultimately the best way to get people to act.”
The summit not only created space for high school students to learn about actionable ways of combatting the climate crisis, but also cultivated opportunities for students from across the globe to get to know each other. “It struck me how people connected on a personal level. For me it was more than learning about projects or research, but about how we are all just teenagers with similar core experiences who want to make positive change,” Lucy Jameson ’27 said.
During the conference, LWHS participants met a group from Ghana who spotlighted their non-profit that recycles thrown out plastic bottles to reinforce concrete structures, creating homes and schools. “I think this was a great example of taking a climate problem and making it into a solution for another issue,” Anoshiravani said.
Aside from attending the conference, the students and chaperones traveled by train from Geneva to Montreux, where they stayed in youth hostels and the Victoria Hotel and Residence, a member of the Villars Alpine Resort designed with sustainability in mind. While there, they went sightseeing, attended a Villars Fellows dinner on their fourth night and explored the stunning surroundings. One moment that really stood out to Anoshiravani was the experience of running up the mountain where the Villars conference was held. “It was super peaceful because it was later at night, and I got to see an amazing view and sunset over the Swiss Alps,” Anoshiravani said. Jameson additionally described the entire trip as fostering “connection, reflection and hope.”
The pilot programs in Mexico City and China as well as the global conference in Switzerland showed students that learning does not stop at the classroom door; they immersed students in diverse cultures, creating lasting memories. From meeting people from across the world to strengthening relationships with classmates and teachers, students were exposed to eye-opening conversations with locals and each other, practicing language skills, immersing themselves in new cultures and expanding their global perspectives. “I hope that students gain cultural humility, cross cultural awareness and communications skills, ” Lau said. Next summer’s trips are already on the horizon with a new Global Program Coordinator to drive these initiatives forward.
