This trip marks the first joint trip for students from Stuart Hall and Christchurch. This partnership promises to add a lot to both schools. It has been in the works for a while now and we are all very excited to see it finally resulting in time together.

The goals of the trip are more or less the same for both schools but the trip comes at different points for the two institutions. For CCS, this is our fifth trip for students to the Heart of the Mayan World. For Stuart Hall, this is the first really purposeful international adventure. It is fun to collaborate, with the newness of the program really resonating for one group and the energy of additional travelers adding to the excitement for the other.

Moving forward, we hope to have students partner on projects and research. We might add to the trips that we offer together. Teachers from both schools will benefit from working with and learning from the other. There is a lot of potential in the partnership.

In addition, as two schools from the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia, there is a common purpose in how we approach this. We want our students to learn core values. We want them to see how their role in the world connects to so many others. We want kindness and goodness to shape how we travel. We want our kids to leave as well-rounded global citizens who will contribute positively. Our time here is shaped by this purpose and the fact that we have reflected on it through chapel, a common philosophy, and guidance from the Episcopal leadership.