RUSTIC PATHWAYS AND SAVE THE CHILDREN
International Cooperation
This summer, Rustic Pathways is proud to continue its groundbreaking relationship with Save the Children. A world renowned organization and champion of children and family rights, Save the Children addresses needs across the United States and around the globe. As the leader in high school service and travel programs, Rustic Pathways has spent the last three decades enriching lives and serving communities. Together, these two organizations are aligning this summer to create long lasting change and positive energy. Beginning June 2012, we are offering high school students the opportunity to join forces with Save the Children on site in three of their program locations: The Dominican Republic, South Carolina, USA and Kentucky, USA.
Batey Communities in the Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a country of sharp contrasts. On one end are the luxury resorts, available only to tourists and an elite community of wealthy Dominicans. On the other end are the impoverished batey villages, small communities that have grown out of the backbreaking work of cutting and processing sugarcane. This summer students will be exposed to both ends of the spectrum, as they gain insight into a country synonymous with both 5 star luxury and suffocating poverty. Students will learn how these batey communities came to be, the social stigmas surrounding them and how Save the Children is working to improve their living conditions.
Efforts in South Carolina
While Rustic Pathways is proud to support all of our international initiatives in countries such as Burma, Mongolia, Ghana, and Peru we are well aware of the growing need right here at home in the United States. For that reason, we have chosen the American South as the site of our U.S. Save the Children program. Many associate South Carolina with its coastal cities and popular beaches, which is why we are turning to an unfrequented corner of Carolina's "up country" to learn about the startling need amongst its children. As we address issues of literacy and learning in our small towns, Rustic Pathways students will learn about the direct correlation between education and poverty through hands-on initiatives in local elementary schools.
Addressing Need in Appalachia
This summer Rustic Pathways and Save the Children will expand its U.S. collaboration to include a community of rural elementary schools in Appalachian Kentucky. Each school represents a small town built in the shadows of the Appalachian Mountains, which was at one point sustained by the coal mining industry. However, today these rural communities compose one of the most impoverished and underserved areas of the U.S. Rustic Pathways students will learn about Save the Children's efforts in this region, and become part of a national program to improve literacy in rural America. This program will mirror its counterpart in South Carolina, but reflect the unique folk culture and close knit communities of Appalachia.
Making an Impact
Students will work alongside Save the Children staff, volunteers and local community members on a variety of ongoing projects. They will learn about the issues affecting these two locations and the methods Save the Children is using to create long-term aid and generate change in these communities. This opportunity will provide unique insight into the inner workings of a global NGO, and the intricacies of both domestic and international aid initiatives. Students will gain priceless knowledge of what it really takes to create change on a grand scale. These programs will provide an incredible combination of powerful community service organized through Save the Children and the quality programming that Rustic Pathways is known for.
