Global Engagement
As the world becomes exponentially more interconnected, what it means to live a consequential life can and should be global in scale and reach. With a commitment to social responsibility, equity, and justice, MFS has the opportunity to provide experiential, real-world learning that deepens students’ understanding of Quaker values while challenging them to apply their content knowledge and skills to issues of global importance. Students should engage with complex problems and ethical dilemmas, learning how to work collaboratively and lead with confident humility. In addition, through humble inquiry, students can see the world from different cultural perspectives. Developing global citizens is not only aligned with the school’s Quaker mission but it is also an opportunity to extend that mission to local and global communities, partner with dynamic institutions, and more effectively prepare students for the demands of college and beyond.
Guiding Queries
- How might we design educational experiences to encourage humble inquiry and empower students to contribute to a global society?
- How might we create and enhance experiential learning opportunities, such as Intensive Learning, to foster connection, collaboration, and cultural understanding between MFS students and their peers around the world?
- How might we partner with local and global organizations to create immersive learning experiences with real-world applications?
Vision
Students will be exposed to a diverse range of global perspectives through educational opportunities and immersive experiences that go beyond travel alone. By engaging students’ natural curiosity and appreciation for other cultures, students will have a nuanced understanding of cultural context and how it informs our sense of identity and place, as well as how it shapes views on global issues.
GOAL:
Design educational experiences that are timely and relevant and encourage global understanding as well as deeper self-awareness for students.
Upcoming Initiatives:
- Design and implement a Lower School Spanish program, including continuity into the Middle School language curriculum
- Partner with World Leadership School to enhance existing experiential learning opportunities to foster student global literacy and engagement
- Partner with local and international institutions to support hands-on and peer-to-peer global learning
- Continue to refine and strengthen the Intensive Learning program to deepen experiential learning grounded in global purpose
Global Engagement Snapshot
Global Leadership Summit: “The World Is What We Make Of It” – Students Explore Germany and Switzerland in Hopes of Creating a Sustainable Future
A cohort of 13 Upper School students and three faculty members explored Switzerland and Germany and represented Moorestown Friends School at a three-day Global Leadership Summit – “Creating a Sustainable Future” in Berlin, Germany in July.
This trip is a model for future thematic Global Engagement experiences, aligning with a Strategic Plan goal to design educational experiences that are timely and relevant and encourage global understanding as well as deeper self-awareness for students.
At the Summit, 800 students (from 23 U.S. states and 12 countries) were assigned to innovation teams to prototype solutions to sustainability challenges. MFS students were leaders, thinkers, and tinkerers, collaborating across differences, and bringing an entrepreneurial mindset to international teamwork.
“Working with students from different parts of the world was a unique and interesting challenge,” said Head of School Julia de la Torre, one of the faculty trip leaders. “Our students’ Quaker values were on full display as they navigated these interactions with flexibility and brought together disparate views to help their teams reach unity around an innovative idea as part of the design thinking process.”
The educational theme of environmental sustainability was carried throughout the trip and beyond the Summit, as students participated in a variety of hands-on learning experiences. At the UNESCO Entlebuch Biosphere in Schüpfheim, Switzerland, the group learned about the environmental benefits of peat bogs and explored renewable energy sources. At Mt. Titlis, also in Switzerland, students explored 5,000 years of ice layers in an ice cave and stood atop a glacier that was predicted to be at risk of disappearing in the next 25 years. They learned about local efforts to minimize the impact of fossil fuels and increase selfsufficiency at Breitnau Energie in the Black Forest of Germany.
A highlight was the visit to Freiburg, Germany, a community which has reinvented itself as a green city over the past few decades. Bicycles take priority over cars; 900-year waterways provide a water source and cooling mechanism for residents; an energy positive City Hall produces more power than it uses, and much more. Berlin was the location of the Summit and there were opportunities to explore the sites of this historic city. The MFS group made a point to travel via the advanced public transportation system.
Mason Levens ’25 provided a reflection about his experience on the trip and at the Summit:
“A key area of personal growth that I developed while traveling through Switzerland and Germany was an ability to make cross-cultural connections that I had not considered before. I think it is one thing to read about a destination, language, or culture, but a whole different experience to engage with these areas in person. Though I have always been a student that is interested in geography, having the ability to visit this region in Europe provided me with a much clearer picture not only of the region itself, but of the ideas, perspectives, and beliefs found within it. At the Summit, the majority of attendees were from the United States; many, just like me, had never traveled to Europe before. The conversations I had at the Summit were beyond insightful, as I learned what thoughts other students from the United States had on their experience touring different regions in Europe. The understanding of these different perspectives from fellow students not only enabled me to appreciate the presence of different ideas regarding global education, but also allowed me to develop innovative ideas to bring back to the MFS community.”
Mason’s mother Victoria Kuhn commented on the transformative experience for Mason and all of the MFS students:
“The Global Leadership Summit, and travel experiences like the Summit, provide our students with the unique opportunity to immerse themselves in the culture, environment, society, and wonderment of being a traveler. It is an empowering opportunity for personal growth, and to appreciate the role we play as stewards for our amazing world. The Summit provided the incredible opportunity for personal growth and stewardship. Mason embraced the unique cultural experiences throughout Switzerland and Germany, stretched his comfort zone (including an effort to overcome an aversion of heights) as he ascended the tremendous altitude of the beautiful Swiss Alps, and grew as a global traveler and steward for our world. These in-depth global experiences are what makes MFS unique. Mason will cherish this experience for a lifetime.”
Students are now charged with sharing their new learnings and perspectives with the MFS community. They are designing environmental action projects to improve and impact the MFS and/or their local communities that they will develop and execute during the 2023-24 school year.
This experience was funded in great part by the generosity of an anonymous donor.
The MFS delegation at the Global Leadership Summit in Berlin.
Students learned about the environmental benefits of peat bogs and explored renewable energy sources at the UNESCO Entlebuch Biosphere in Schüpfheim, Switzerland.
