Global Education Day

Global Education Day is a beloved annual tradition among the Middle School students. The day has a unique schedule, enabling students to immerse themselves in succinct, globally minded, and specially curated lessons during the morning. In the afternoon, students joined their SWARMS, multi-grade groups, and competed in a series of challenges in an “Amazing Race” style competition. 

Unique Lessons to Prepare Global Citizens

During the first half of the day, students attended various small group sessions throughout the Middle School where they received specialized lessons from community specialists and guest speakers who crafted them for Global Education Day. 

There were a total of 20 different topics students could learn about during one of their three small group sessions. Below are a few highlights from the sessions.

Brian Gill, founder of Cool Critters Outreach and guest speaker at Global Education Day, shows students one of the snakes his non-profit rescued.

The founder of Cool Critters Outreach, Brian Gill, brought his friends — a bearded dragon, a chinchilla, and more — to talk about their natural environment and the consequences when they are released where they don’t belong. 

Upper School health teacher and the co-founder of Scrap2Home Nick Francis taught students how to build a table (pictured right) while discussing his nonprofit’s goals of saving wood from landfills and using that wood to make furniture for individuals who can’t afford to buy it. 

Dr. Mina Lee, a Professor of Management Strategy at the Williams College of Business at Xavier University, gave a short history lesson about Korea before delving into its culture and language. 

Dr. Matthew Hensler, an otolaryngologist from Christ Hospital, discussed how his medical specialty (which involves, ears, noses, and throats) has many traditional and non-traditional career opportunities, including medical missions to Jamaica, Peru, and Nicaragua. 

Competing to Build Camaraderie

During the afternoon, students competed in an “Amazing Race”-style competition where they traveled around Hillsdale Campus and completed a series of challenges to earn points. 

Students “ran with the bulls,” raced up “Mount Everest,” crossed a river, performed an Irish jig, and tried new food from around the world, just to name a few!

Depending on the challenge’s difficulty, SWARMs could earn from 240-900 points once successfully completed.

After the competition concluded, students gathered in their designated SWARM classrooms to await the results.