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Imagine growing up black in America and visiting Africa before you turn 18. A group of New York City students had a magical experience that would change their lives.
Students at Bronx Preparatory High School were able to spend a week in Senegal, West Africa, through the school’s Global Citizen Program. The all-expenses paid experience is designed to help the students become future leaders.
No fewer than 20 students were selected to attend the immersive trip. The competitive selection process had over 400 applicants. After returning home, students described their time in Senegal as “life-changing” and impactful.
“They really appreciate their school, being in the Bronx, having their own family,” Principal Cassius Gill told News 12 The Bronx.
Their time was immersed in Senegalese culture; Experience the language, cuisine and aura of the locals living there. For many, it was their first time out of the country. One student, Fudai Singateh, described the trip as coming home and his first chance to visit the country where his ancestors came from.
“My background is Senegalese, and I never had time to go to Africa for the first time,” he said.
Students from a high-performing charter school visited a number of attractions, sites and landmarks while in the West African country. One of the most transformative moments of the trip was tracing slave roots on Gore Island. On the way back to Dakar, students were able to retrace the path traveled by many slaves before seeing Africa fade into the horizon forever.
“They arrived at a place called Gore Island, which was traditionally the launching point for slave ships that traveled west, and that was always a poignant and emotional part of the journey for them,” Gill said.
Democracy Prep Public Schools CEO Natasha Trivers fully supports the school’s Global Citizen Program. She believes that it is difficult to convince future leaders that they can change the world without seeing it.
“All young people, especially those from historically underserved communities, should travel internationally because the world is rightfully theirs,” she said. “They need to sit in their power and know that they are in any stage in any country. In addition, they need to meet people from different countries, ethnicities and cultural backgrounds to learn about and show these differences. Deep respect for these communities, but based on our common humanity.
The students’ trip to Senegal will not be their last. The school is sending them to Maine this summer and overseas again in 2024.
“Test scores are great, strong discipline is great, but what are you doing to feed the whole child and I think travel is a big part of that,” says George.
Watch this video of students thriving under the Senegalese sun.
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