Category: Senegal 2025-26
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Feeling the Hijab
By Cayetana Fernandez Before going on the trip, I had only heard a few things about Islam in Senegal. It’s true that in my home there are some Muslim people but I don’t really know much about it. In my mind, Islam was a religion that was searching for different things in a violent way. …
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Feeling & Understanding History
By Maggie Mays All year in my 11th grade humanities class we have studied the rights granted to Americans and the general history of how those rights came to be and ways they were violated. The lessons I have learned in Senegal have given me more insight on these topics and helped me really feel…
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Imagine
By Paula Sancho Imagine… walking every morning for more than an hour under the heat of the Senegalese sun. Imagine… not eating or drinking water from sunrise to sunset. Imagine… being in a classroom with 50 students, 130 degree heat, and a blackboard. Imagine… school as a place of purpose and joy, with smiles and…
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A Lesson in Community
By Ayden Claussen After staying in Kecouta’s village and the Lion Camp for the first week of this trip I experienced something amazing that many students have written about on this blog before. A normal Senegalese community. The reason why that experience was so special is because a normal Senegalese community would be so rare…
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Connections Make Reflections
By Kalea Moore Back at school, we have a saying that “connections make meaning,” but I think this trip has showed me a different interpretation of what connections really make. Here, connections are about the way people treat each other. We saw throughout the trip a real culture of hospitality. But, we also got to…
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Overcoming Stereotypes
By Ms. Cavanaugh Growing up I had learned assumptions that Africa was similar to the US in its organization. Rather than a continent with separate, distinct countries and cultures, it was more like a country with states that were much more similar than different. Growing up in the late 80s, early 90s, I was bombarded…
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Giving is the Highest Form of Humanity
By Cindy Zhang After arriving in Senegal, I experienced something completely different from what I had imagined. We gained a deeper understanding of this place, so different from our usual environment. Life here moves at a slower pace. The people here are simple, kind, hospitable, and generous—at least, that’s how we felt with all the…
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In the Baobab Tree, Forever Old
By Finley Caisse I see a Toubab on the beach he drinks a soda, Sip after sip he enjoys the taste, He throws the bottle away, — on his table sits a bottle cap, No larger than my fingernail, on it a senegalese gazelle stands, its print frozen in time, a deep green color glistening…
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Yearn to Learn
By Gidget Valadez Little sleepy eyes up to make breakfast early The schoolhouse calls Dusty hair, sometimes coiffed, sometimes wild The march of tattered backpacks Covered in superheroes and sparkles No coaxing required There is a hunger for connection A yearning for learning About those things familiar in nationality, language, history, tradition, and culture And…
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Home
By Skyler Casey Home’s always been defined to me as the place with your bed, family, and belongings. My room at my house is kind of an isolated place. My parents work a lot and half of my family lives in a house two hours away. I usually come home, do work, and go to…
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Dance Offs
By Davis Bugg Dance offs: a dancing competition between two or more people. Dance offs can be competitive between the dancers and if there are judges, there can be that pressure of having the right technique, originality, and execution. Here in Senegal, they are fun, engaging, and friendly. In fact, they can be so much…
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Appreciating our Students
By Mr. Smith I was going to write a post about my friend, Kecou. I was going to write about his warm welcomes, his infectious smile, his calming presence, and his incredible generosity. But, Kecou already is a virtual celebrity to the followers of Christchurch Global Education. While talking to our new chaperone, Censei Steve…
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Crazy Adventure
By Carter Blankenship Our school trip to Senegal is something none of us will ever forget. At first, we thought it would just be another trip with friends, but it turned into something much bigger. We are learning about new places, meeting wonderful people, and seeing parts of nature that feel completely unreal. The trip…
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Harmony
By Will Flagg I was especially excited to visit Senegal this year. After toiling all demonstration week, I was ready to free my mind from calculus and Descartes, and balancing chemical equations for one week. I was so exited to get to the airport. Everything was going smoothly. It was the easiest time with TSA…
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Lesson Learned
By William Flagg Preface: If you’ve never met me before, bonjour. Most people call me Will, Flagg, or Bill (Sorry mom). Like a lot of kids my age, for most of my life I was irresponsible. It was pretty normal to be childish as a child, and logically, I was not trusted much by my…