Jessica Hernandez ’19 stood at the railing, looking out a fantastic panorama of a sparkling bay, the bustling streets and soaring towers of Hong Kong, and the rolling hills and mountains beyond.
A year ago, she saw this breathtaking sight for the first time on a MayTerm trip with her fellow Poets, as they examined the international hub’s economics up-close. Last month, the business administration major again took advantage of the annual short-term, faculty-led trip to see mainland China. The two-week adventure capped off in Hong Kong, bringing Hernandez full circle.
“As a business administration major, looking at China’s economy and financial system was really intriguing,” Hernandez said.
“From this trip I have gotten both a cultural experience from visiting places like the Great Wall, Summer Palace, and the Palace of Heaven, and also a really good business experience by visiting local NGOs like Greenpeace, The Global Environmental Institute, and a big corporation like Intex,” she said. “It was a class that encouraged us to learn and reflect as we went, which I really appreciated.”
This past MayTerm, classes also traveled in Denmark to explore social work policy and practice. Social work major Ivelis Colón '19 gained new and different perspectives about the field she's passionate about during the trip.
Another class traveled to Costa Rica, where they explored urban education, sustainability, ecotourism, and the country’s rich biological diversity. Other students joined one of two trips to Italy: one in Northern Italy focused on the environment, and another in Southern Italy and Sicily focused on history and culture.
Closer to home, students embarked on a trip to Hawaii to examine the concept of historical trauma—the distress experienced over generations by groups of people subjected to social, political, and cultural domination.
All of the international trips were all eligible for the Global Poet Scholarship Fund: $2,000 available to all sophomores, juniors, and seniors for studying abroad through the Office of International Programs.
Beyond the academic MayTerm trips, two student clubs also started their summer by exploring the world.
The Whittier College chapter of Global Medical Brigades traveled to Honduras, where more than half of the rural population lives below the poverty line, to heal and empower local communities. The students, many of whom have aspirations to become doctors, immediately gained experience tending to more than 800 patients, and even saved several lives.
“My time in Honduras was one of the most rewarding and eye-opening experiences I have ever had,” said Sam Johnson ’20, a biology major. Besides providing immediate treatment, he and his fellow Poets also partnered with the community to teach them about preventative health practices, distributed much-needed medications, and provided more than 900 hygiene kits.
Members of the Jewish Student Union also traveled to Israel with Joshua Hartman, the club’s advisor and associate dean for students, to holy cities like Jerusalem and Zefat. The trip is organized through Birthright, a non-profit that sponsors free trips to Israel for young adults of Jewish heritage.
