Category: News

Isabela Alvarez Harris ‘21, USA-Minn., received four college acceptances — all with substantial scholarships — after applying to six schools. 

In the end, Isabela chose Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, where she will major in nursing and healthcare management with a possible minor in nutrition. Her scholarship will cover 98 percent of her education costs.

“I chose Case Western because they have a fantastic nursing program that begins clinical rotations in the first year and is also located next to three major hospitals, allowing for great exposure to a hospital  setting,” she said.

In addition, Case Western offers an integrated bachelor’s of science in nursing and master’s in healthcare management, which will allow Isabel to graduate with both titles within five years. 

As of Tuesday, 43 second-years had shared their decisions for college with Marie Assir, director of college counseling.

“Due to COVID, changes in the IB, and most colleges in the U.S. going test-optional, this was a very challenging year in college admissions,” said college counselor Patrick Firme. “Despite that, students worked very hard on their applications, and the decisions turned out very well for the class of 2021. Marie and I are very proud of what the second-years accomplished this year with their admission decisions, and are excited to see what they accomplish at their colleges and universities.”

Other students who shared the news with Castle on the Hill included: 

• Tamzid Islam, Bangladesh, Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Fla., to study aerospace engineering and music.
• Yingzheng Fiona Li, UC Berkeley to study global studies and data science. 
• Eliott Choppin, Belgium, Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands to study architecture.
• Alison Karki, USA-NJ, Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., to study either government or women, gender and sexuality studies.
• Oluwatomisin Adeyemi, Nigeria, New York University in New York City to study computer science and economics.
• William Kattrup, Denmark, majoring in international relations at or Brown University in Providence, R.I.
• Jon Yeung, Hong Kong, Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., majoring in architecture with a double minor in business and real estate. 
• Luci Bryson, USA-Ala., Middlebury College in Vermont to major in neuroscience and minor in studio art. 
• Daniela Rivas, El Salvador, Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Ore., majoring in international affairs with a minor in political economy. 
• Julius Schaut, Germany, College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, Maine, to study human ecology after taking a gap year
• Emily Li, Hong Kong, Parsons School of Design in New York City for a dual degree in communication design and politics.

Jon Yeung applied to 14 colleges, was accepted to four and waitlisted by three. He chose Cornell University in New York for its undergraduate architecture program, which is ranked No. 1 in the United States.

“I also liked their campus a lot from my tour back in 2019,” Jon said.

Luci Bryson received full scholarships to Middlebury College in Vermont, Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y., and Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Ore. with the Presidential Scholarship Award.

“I ended up choosing Middlebury because they have a strong program for neuroscience and rehabilitative psychological research that I’m excited to hopefully participate in,” Luci said. “For now, the plan is to work towards a doctorate in psychology or become an art therapist.”

She looks forward to exploring the East Coast and continuing living in nature as well as being so close to Burlington and Montreal.

BY GIZEM OZTURK ’22, Netherlands

Twenty-four United World College-USA students are sporting less hair after participating in Bald For A Cause on April 11.

The students, of which 22 opted to go bald while the remaining two had their hair cut, donated 100 to 120 inches of hair to Locks of Love. The nonprofit provides custom-made hair prosthetics to children who have suffered hair loss as a result of medical conditions, such as burn trauma and cancer treatment. Students also raised $80 for the University of New Mexico Children’s Hospital.

Economics teacher and assistant residential coordinator Liam O’Hara was the only faculty member who chose to go bald.

First-year student organizers Gizem Ozturk, Netherlands, and Camila Vargas, Venezuela, were expecting 10 people to participate.

“The event started with the organizers going bald, which quickly led to many more people jumping in and deciding to go bald,” Camila said. “While only expecting 10 people to go bald, 22 people actually went bald, which gave us an amazing feeling.”

 “The turnout was great,” she continued. “We didn’t expect so many people to shave their heads, so thank you for coming.”

Participants like Maria Gomberg ‘22, Mexico, said she went bald to feel more confident.

“I had just woken up from a nap, I looked at my roommate and was like ‘I am going bald’ and I went bald,” Maria said.

Organizers started planning in mid-March. After receiving approval, the girls started marketing the event. 

“To make the event successful, we decided that we wanted to have a speaker with music, an audience, a microphone, students to shave their head, food and live music,” Camila said. “We wanted the event to be a place where students could come by, have fun, watch, listen to music, eat and support each other.”

First-years Alicia Barroso Rodrigo of Ireland, Angel Li of Hong Kong and Nina Lidar of USA-Calif. performed songs during the event, while students gathered to support each other. 

It’s fair to say that Donna Chavez has made it in a man’s world.

A lifelong Las Vegas resident, Chavez worked in her uncle’s auto-body repair shop, sanding and painting cars. She spent two years working 12-hour days shoveling gravel in a Santa Fe pit and was the caretaker for a Villanueva ranch.

On Feb. 8, Chavez was named the first female director of facilities at the United World College-USA, where she got her start in 2008 as the Montezuma campus’ first female groundskeeper.

“I was very honored for being a woman,” the 41-year-old mother of two said about her promotion.

A 1998 graduate of Robertson High School, Chavez oversees 13 employees in maintenance, grounds, custodial and transportation. She replaces former director of facilities David Vigil, who retired in May 2020 after 26 years at UWC-USA.

Chavez worked in grounds for five years, maintenance for two, and a few years later, was named the grounds and maintenance supervisor. She has been the acting director of facilities since Vigil’s retirement.

Chavez was promoted to the director’s position for several reasons, including her longevity, institutional knowledge and close working relationship with Vigil, said UWC-USA Chief Finance and Operations Officer Taylor Gantt.

“One thing that surprised me the most was her willingness to be coached and learn,” Gantt said. “She was never defensive and always very coachable, which gave me a lot of confidence in her work.”

Chavez said she learned a lot from Vigil – her mentor and teacher.

“I felt I could give this place more and wanted to take on the next mission to better myself for my family,” she said. “I know it’s a lot of work, but I’ve grown to love this place.”

Chavez expects the campus’ aging infrastructure to be her biggest challenge.

She also appreciates her co-workers.

“We’re like family,” Chavez said. “We’re here for each other and everyone is very supportive of each other.”

She and her significant other, Leon Batoma, are the parents of Eliana, 4, and Christina, 3.

 

 

 

BY YASIN YOUSUF

Castle on the Hill staff writer

United World College-USA students and employees are benefitting from New Mexico taking a nationwide-lead by vaccinating 38 percent of its adults against COVID-19.

As of the second week of May, 196 UWC-USA students had received their first vaccine and 188 were fully vaccinated, said Kayla Cooper, COVID residential coordinator. 

In addition, 96 of the school’s 99 employees are fully vaccinated, said Taylor Gantt, chief finance and operations officer for UWC-USA.

“The vaccine has been offered to all students before they leave in May, and students are responsible for registering with the department of health,” Kayla said.

It’s too late to sign up now because students will not be on campus for the second vaccine, which is given three weeks after the first.

So far, students have not shown any adverse reactions to vaccinations, although minor side effects lasting no longer than a day were reported, she said.

Social guidelines such as fieldhouse and cafeteria capacity will remain in place since most students are not fully vaccinated, Kayla said.

“Any changes to these guidelines will be from the state and the governor’s office, not from the school,” she said.

Vaccinating the majority of the students doesn’t mean things will return to pre-COVID protocols.

“We need to acknowledge that while the campus may be upwards of 95 percent vaccinated, it doesn’t mean other places are,” Kayla said. “So it would be more likely for restrictions to loosen on campus before they’re loosened for off-campus activities. But we need to wait for more guidelines to be released from the governor’s office as it pertains to vaccinated congregate settings and vaccinated individuals before knowing exactly what upwards of 95 percent vaccination means for us.”

It is still unknown if UWC-USA will require the incoming first-year students to be vaccinated, given that many students will come from countries where vaccination is not as accessible as in the United States, she added.

 

BY RAYMOND LIU AO

Castle on the Hill staff writer

Beirut, Aug. 4, 2020, a day that will remain in infamy. 

“Every Lebanese person remembers their exact location when the Beirut explosion hit,” said  Jason Bouramia ‘22, Lebanon. “Every person remembers that evening. As the sun started setting, I remember my door rattling and shaking. My dad and sister were a few kilometers away from the port. I remember calling them and my sister sobbing.” 

The explosion, which left at least 200 dead and 5,000 hurt, was blamed on the Beirut port authority and Lebanese Customs for leaving some 2,750 tons of highly explosive ammonium nitrate in a hangar for nearly seven years in unsafe conditions.

After a year of rising hyperinflation and political instability in Lebanon, the aftermath of the explosion was the tipping point of the political, social and economic crises in Lebanon. Yet, Jason set foot in Beirut every day, ready to help. 

“I woke up at 6 every morning since volunteer buses to Beirut departed at 7:30,” he said. “With a mask and shovel, we would walk around the streets in Beirut and do the best we could to help. From cleaning up the remains of a hospital with blood stains on the floors to picking up concrete blocks from destroyed homes; this was the only thing we could do to help our country.”

Jason heard stories about helping people blinded from the explosion, finding people stuck under concrete and cleaning up the remnants of people’s homes. These countless stories of success and agony led to a feeling he would describe as numbness. 

“At one point, my parents thought I was becoming obsessed with these projects,” Jason said. “ I would come back home at 8 p.m. and continue contacting people to arrange the rides for the next day. But, I felt a social responsibility to do whatever I could to help out.” 

His involvement in the aftermath of the Beirut explosion went beyond volunteering in the streets. Jason led the data-collection database for the non-profit Locate Victims Beirut.

“Due to the massive scale of the explosion, many people ended up deceased, displaced, or missing,” he said. “Without a database, these victims would not have been able to be identified. My work in Locate Victims Beirut allowed for the gathering of 631 deceased and missing people in a concise place.” 

Locate Victims Beirut served as a primary contact for families to report their missing family and friends. The organization served as a guideline to find over 350 missing people. 

“At a certain point it felt that we were doing the government’s job,” Jason said. “Every day after coming back home from volunteering in Beirut, I would stare at my screen for hours updating the database, responding to our 24/7 hotline, calling people with missing family members.”

Locate Victims Beirut was featured in Lebanese political talk show “Sar el Waqt,” and international media outlets such as The Guardian, The New York Times and USA Today. 

Jason  wants to continue working in crisis prevention, mitigation and preparedness frameworks. 

“Anyone is able to make a change if they have the mindset, energy and time to put in,” he said. “Making a change is something I want to do. I want to be able to take this further. Take the framework to identify victims and apply it whenever a disaster happens to promote quick resilience and overcoming of crises.” 

 

A UWC-USA graduate who puts smiles on the faces of some of the most underserved children around the world is this year’s Giulio Regeni Alumni Impact Award winner.

Dr. Ruben Ayala ‘92 is chief medical officer for Operation Smile, which provides life-saving reconstructive cleft palate surgeries.

“It’s a huge honor,” said Dr. Ruben. “I can’t even describe it. I was surprised, honored and overwhelmed and didn’t expect this at all.”

A public health physician from Panama with more than 25 years of experience in advocacy and humanitarian assistance, he has planned, executed and overseen surgical programs in more than 40 countries. Dr. Ayala also oversaw the establishment of Operation Smile foundations in low- and middle-income countries to patients affected by cleft conditions.

Classmate Becky Day nominated Dr. Ayala.

“I couldn’t be more thrilled,” Day said. “Over the last several years, Ruben has shared multiple times on our class Facebook page stories and videos from Operation Smile. To know Ruben is to know that he is a person with such a kind heart.”

Day noted that Dr. Ayala had a passion for Operation Smile long before he worked for them, volunteering for the nonprofit while still at UWC-USA.

“After going to medical school, he clearly could have chosen a different direction, but he chose to stick with Operation Smile, an organization that gives back worldwide,” she said.

Given annually to a UWC-USA alumnus whose work and life exemplify the UWC mission, the impact award was created in memory of Giulio Regeni ’07, an Italian citizen and a student at Cambridge University who was murdered while conducting his doctoral research on the formation of a street vendors’ union in Egypt. Giulio was in Cairo when on Jan. 25, 2016, he disappeared. His body was found nine days later.

Alumni nominate recipients for the award. Other finalists were Anna Wieslander ‘87 and Jessica Horn ’97, said UWC-USA Alumni Engagement Officer Reed Baumgarten ’89. Alumni on the UWC-USA Board of Trustees choose the recipient.

“Each of the finalists was ‘living the UWC mission’ in their own unique way and doing impressive work, but I think Ruben won this year because after a difficult year filled with so much isolation, death and illness, his work feels very tangible,” said board member Melanie Weston ‘86. “He is on the front lines, changing children’s lives through healthcare, something that almost all of us had on our minds this past year.”

Weston noted this in no way diminishes the complex, difficult work the two runners-up are engaged in.

“In contrast it just fills me with pride to see the broad scope of work our alumni are doing,” she said. “Every single one of our graduates is making a difference in their community, in their own small or large way.”

The award recipient speaks during graduation on the Montezuma campus. Dr. Ayala’s presentation for the May 11 ceremony will be done virtually since the graduation is open only to students and employees.

A resident of Norfolk, Va., Dr. Ayala received his undergraduate degree in biology with a minor in chemistry from Linfield College, McMinnville, Ore. The 47-year-old got his medical degree from UAG School of Medicine and master’s in public health from London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

More recently, Dr. Ayala has focused on the review of surgical outcomes and the evolution of standards of surgical care for patients with cleft lip and cleft palate. He served as part of the delegation of the government of Vietnam to the World Health Assembly in 2015 and 2017, helping align the country’s support for global surgery and anesthesia.

Dr. Ayala is the president of the Permanent Council of the Global Alliance for Surgical, Obstetric, Trauma and Anesthesia Care, and represents Operation Smile at the Global Initiative for Children’s Surgery, the World Health Organization’s Global Initiative for Emergency and Essential Surgical Care, and the United Nation’s Economic and Social Council. He leads Operation Smile’s global health policy efforts promoting access to safe, timely and effective surgical care to underserved communities around the world.

Dr. William P. Magee Jr., co-founder and chief executive officer for Operation Smile Global Headquarters in Virginia Beach, Va., noted that Dr. Ayala is someone whose foundation embodies the principles of uniting people, nations and cultures for peace and a sustainable future.

“As chief medical officer at Operation Smile, Dr. Ayala has drawn upon his years of experience and growth within the organization to be an advocate for the underserved and a change agent at the global level,” Magee said.

UWC-USA is pleased to announce the finalists for the 2021 Giulio Regeni Alumni Impact Award. The award was established to recognize UWC-USA alumni whose life and work reflect the UWC mission on local, regional, or national stages. Nominated by their peers, these alumni are truly living the mission in their work and daily lives.

Anna Wieslander ‘87 (Sweden) serves as director for Northern Europe at the Atlantic Council and heads the AC office in Stockholm. The Atlantic Council is a non-partisan American think tank on foreign policy. She is also the chairwoman of the Institute for Security and Development Policy, a Stockholm-based think tank with a focus on Central Asia and Asia. Anna also serves as secretary general of the Swedish Defence Association, a non-political NGO that for almost 130 years has promoted knowledge on defense and security among the Swedish public. 

Jessica Horn ‘97 (Fiji) is a women’s rights and gender equality expert, and a dynamic speaker, trainer, and facilitator. She has worked for two decades supporting activist organizations, donors, and the UN to deepen analysis, shape policy and funding, and refine interventions to defend women’s rights to health, bodily autonomy, and freedom from violence; to build activist leadership and strengthen social movements; and develop strategies for building feminist futures. This includes over fifteen years in philanthropy as a grant maker, in donor governance and advisory roles, and as grants assessor and evaluator.

Ruben Ayala ‘92 (Panama) currently serves as Operation Smile’s Chief Medical Officer. He is also the current President of the Permanent Council of the Global Alliance for Surgical, Obstetric, Trauma, and Anesthesia Care, represents Operation Smile at the Global Initiative for Children’s Surgery, the World Health Organization’s Global Initiative for Emergency and Essential Surgical Care, and the United Nations Economic and Social Council. Ruben leads Operation Smile’s global health policy efforts promoting access to safe, timely, and effective surgical care to under-served communities around the world.

Juulia Suuronen of Finland, Metin Orsel of Turkey, and Elie Rizk of Lebanon share something in common.

All are among 78 UWC-USA alumni who serve on national committees for their countries.

“I find it rewarding to continue to be part of the movement and to work towards ensuring that future generations of Finnish students have the possibility to attend UWC schools,” said Juulia, ‘15. “Of course it is also a nice way to meet old and new UWC friends.”

She joined the Finnish National Committee as a ‘thank-you’ to the committee for funding her UWC experience. Juulia is her committee’s treasurer.

“In a nutshell, I am in charge of the daily economics of the national committee, and involved in our budgeting and school selections,” she said. “A lot of my work involves communicating with our funders and the finance departments of the UWC schools.”

Because the committee is a non-profit, Juulia also keeps track of its payments and bookkeeping. She is also involved in student selections and other national committee activities to support the other board members.

“As cheesy as it sounds, the best thing about volunteering is meeting and working with the other alumni,” said Juulia, who is working on her master’s in environmental and resource economics at the University of Helsinki. “I have made many new friends and reconnected with old ones.”

Since joining the Turkish National Committee, Metin ‘88 has been involved with selections, welcoming candidates and families, computer work and assisting the committee chairperson with written correspondence to the Ministry of Education.

“I gave presentations on UWC at different high schools and some of them are on YouTube,” he said.

A computer engineer with a master’s in business administration, Metin also started the Minority Project, trying to increase the representation of minorities in the applicant pool.

“What got me started on this project was realizing that very few, almost no Jews, Greeks, Armenians or other minorities applied, let alone getting selected,” he said. “We, as a committee, are not prejudiced, but, apparently, we were somewhat short in expressing ourselves.

Metin started with the Armenian community, which is mainly concentrated in Istanbul. He wrote to the heads of five private high schools, gave a presentation to the board of their educational foundation, gave an interview to the joint periodical of the minorities in Istanbul and announced the possibility of a two-year scholarship for a minority member.

“Thanks to the efforts of Delal Dink, the daughter of the murdered Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, the schools welcomed our call for promotion and we got the first applications from their students,” he said. “One Armenian girl got selected and went to Dilijan. Now, I’m extending the domain of the project to the three Greek schools in Istanbul.

Metin believes it’s the feeling of indebtedness that pushes the UWC graduates to take part in national committees.

“Of course, it need not be a UWC bound thing,” he said. “Volunteering for the community is a way of paying back (or forward) what UWC has given to us all. The life changing experience has indeed made us all very different human beings.”

Elie ‘20 volunteered for his country’s national committee last summer after the committee reached out to families, looking for interns.

“I have always wanted to work with my national committee as they are really nice and fun people to work with,” he said. “I thought that was my golden chance since it was fully remote and I had so much free time because of the lockdown.”

A freshman economics major at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn., Elie said the committee’s main goal was increasing the number of applicants.

“Thus, I conceived and executed strategies to expand the reach and recognition of the movement by redesigning the website to improve content and appeal,” he said. “These efforts indeed resulted in increasing the number of applicants by 20 more than last year.”

Elie also helped organize and design workshops for upcoming and current students. Workshops focused on the International Baccalaureate readiness, college applications and time management.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When Rodrigo Blanco’s first child was born, he chose his UWC-USA Get-Away parents to be his daughter’s godparents. 

Getaway parents on and off for 30 years, Patrick Alarid and Jeanne-Marie Crockett, were honored and flew to Minneapolis to baptize Carlota.

“That’s how much I appreciated them after that they gave me a roof over my head and an opportunity to feel like a family,” said Blanco ’04, Paraguay.

A California native and Las Vegas, N.M., resident, Alarid has hosted about 25 getaway students since 1991. He became involved with the UWC-USA Get-away program after graduating from New Mexico Highlands University and getting a job at UWC-USA.

Although Alarid spent most of his career in state government, he remained involved with the program including after he met Jeanne-Marie in 1994 and while the couple were living in Santa Fe for 10 years.

“During one year, we had students from Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Spain, and they all had friends who became our getaways because they didn’t have getaways,” Alarid said. “When we had get-togethers at our house, we would have six to seven students; they sure liked Jeanne-Marie’s cooking. Once, we had Thanksgiving for many of them in Santa Fe.”

Blanco’s relationship with Alarid and Crockett goes beyond his two years in Montezuma. 

Blanco initially went to college in Belgium, but two years later returned to Las Vegas and received a full ride to attend New Mexico Highlands. He completed his bachelor’s in business administration and finance in 2½ years, graduating summa cum laude. Alarid and Crockett helped make it happen.

“I lived with them,” Blanco said. “They hosted me in their house. I didn’t have to pay rent and they were feeding me, so I tried to finish my degree as soon as possible.”

Blanco, 36, works in management accounting and finance controls for Cargill, a global food corporation based in Minnesota. He and his wife, Andrea, live in Costa Rica with their 3-year-old daughter, Carlota.

Tamás Orbán ’93, Hungary, was one of Alarid’s first getaway students. The two remained in touch, initially by mail and later by email. Three times, Orban has returned to New Mexico; each time he visited Alarid.

When Orban returned to UWC-USA for his 10-year reunion, Alarid met Tamas’ future wife Eszter. The last time they saw each other was in 2018, when Orban, a biologist and researcher, traveled from his home in Budapest to Santa Fe for a conference.

Orban, 46, attributes his friendship with Alarid, 64, to their closeness in age.

“We became good friends,” Orban said. “He was more like a brother and really knew what we liked to do.”

They would hike, fish and watch movies and traveled to California for winter break and Project Week to visit Alarid’s family on his dime.

“That was very generous,” Orban said. “He really wanted us to get to know California. We got to know his mother and father.”

“At UWC, I was exposed to many new cultures, but the funny thing is although you are in the United States, he was the one who taught me about the U.S. culture,” Orban continued.

Get-away student Elisa Ruiz ’20, Spain, saw Alarid and Crockett monthly.

“Sometimes school would get too busy, but I knew I could always count on them,” Ruiz said.

The getaway students had a messenger group-chat with Alarid and Crockett, and the couple would text students to invite them to lunch or bring dinner to campus.

“Patrick would also call me every once in a while to check on me and he would always send me very good music recommendations,” Ruiz said. “So even though we would not see each other every day, we always kept in touch.”

Her fondest memory was during the first semester of her second-year, when Ruiz felt overwhelmed from classes, ExEds, deadlines, college applications and more.

“I needed a change of scenery so I thought of reaching out to my getaways,” she said. “I remember calling Patrick and feeling the kindness of his voice. He did not hesitate to offer me to stay over at their house. It was a much needed weekend away.”

“I will never forget the kindness and the love with which they hosted me in such a delicate time,” Ruiz continued. “I would also never forget how he stocked up the pantry with hot chocolate just for my stay.”

Currently studying politics and international relations at Sciences Po University in France, she said Crockett is an amazing cook and she would always prepare the delicious food during the holidays.

“I will never forget her ham casserole,” Ruiz said. “She was very generous with her time too — she was the one that showed me around all the local businesses of Las Vegas.” 

 

By Tianyu Chen ’21, China

Thirty-four UWC-USA students took backpacking trips to the Gila National Forest in southwestern New Mexico during Project Week, including 12 wilderness leaders who went on a six-day advanced trip.

The Advanced Gila trip tested backpacking skills, including risk management and team communication. Once qualified, the wilderness leaders will go on one of the most challenging hiking trips at UWC-USA, known as the April Finals.

“The Advanced Gila trip is for the leaders who will focus on risk management and run the backpacking experience themselves,” said Rachel Fristedt, co-director of the wilderness program at UWC-USA. “The adult instructors will play a spectator role more frequently and allow the student leaders to revisit the leadership skills.”

Besides the Advanced Gila program, the Open Gila was available to anyone who wanted to spend the week learning backpacking skills. 

“I chose (the Open) Gila because I realized that I haven’t been on as many wilderness trips as I could have,” said Ghita Sahbi, ’21, Morocco. “I wanted to have one last long trip in the wilderness of the Southwest before graduating.”

This year’s Project Week was the first time in seven years for trips to the Gila National Forest, one of the first designated wilderness areas in the United States. In the past, Project Week wilderness trips have included Blue Range in Arizona and Escalante in Utah. 

“Gila is pretty much like Blue Range, just 50 to 100 miles away from each other,” said Rachel. “It is drier than the Pecos Wilderness Area, but all the trips will be near the Gila River.”

Each group had two adult instructors, including faculty and licensed instructors who live in New Mexico.

“Frankly, I am a little stressed out about my first lengthy trip,” said Ghita. “But I am sure I will have a wonderful week out in the wilderness with the help of my peers and instructors.”

“Although Gila is my first full week trip at school, I feel confident because I have spent a lot of time in nature,” added Léna Molnár, ’22, Hungary. “I look forward to bonding with some new people on the trip.”

As a prerequisite to the April Finals, the Advanced Gila is a comprehensive evaluation of participants. Students will demonstrate leadership skills in safe kitchen management, map-reading, and risk assessments. If they complete the trip successfully, they will qualify for the April Finals — a one-night trip to Joaquin Trailhead on April 17 and 18. That’s also the same weekend for other students going on backpacking trips to fulfill the wilderness requirement. 

“You will hike with three to four other leaders without the help of adult instructors,” Rachel said about the April Finals. “Everything must be well-executed on your own, such as doing the bear hang and selecting camping sites.”

Equipped with an emergency contact device, the April Finals group will hike past the wilderness instructors on their way for a safety check-in. 

“From all the training I have got, I feel confident in myself but also in my peers,” said Keita Ueno ‘21, Japan. “I believe we can complete the trip successfully through cooperation. The April trip is a good way to conclude my wilderness activities at UWC-USA and hone the skills for future use.”

“I have heard from past participants that the trip was empowering and worthwhile,” Rachel added. “I hope that the April Finals will give students the confidence to go on wilderness trips on their own after they graduate from UWC-USA.”