Interact Club connects with students in Roatan

The Warwick Valley High School Interact Club has already participated in its very first outreach program of the year! They worked with their regular partners at the Warwick Valley Rotary Club and Hilltop Communities to connect students here in Warwick with students in Roatán, Honduras through an outreach effort called Branches Across Borders: One Well & Global Literacy. It's a part of Hilltop Communities' PATH (Promoting Art Teamwork Hope) program, a non-profit initiative committed to "sustainable, community-led change." 

^{[Pictured above, a class of students in Roatan display the poster they created to send to the US.]}

The idea for the collaboration first came to light during a recent Warwick Valley Rotary luncheon. At the meeting, the president and vice president of Hilltop Communities, Dr. Roseanne Espostio and Rick Bette, shared their organization's vision of "attainable and sustainable goals in education, infrastructure, and partnerships." They talked about the educational outreach that PATH has going on, including bringing robotics into the Central American classrooms. They also talked bout a literacy project, which is where the Interact Club has gotten involved.    

"Rotary’s area of focus this month is education and literacy, so our participation ties in perfectly," said WVHS teacher and Interact Club advisor Jeanine Fogler. "Right now, they're sponsoring 50 students abroad to receive the book Emily and the Mango Man, by Gary Chamer. It's a story about finding your gift, learning from elders, and celebrating culture."

Following is from a recent Instagram post by Hilltop Communities: From the book Emily and the Mango Man, and robotics demonstrations, came this idea: a poster with roots for culture, a trunk for what your gifts are, and branches for hopes and dreams... This is Branches Across Borders: voices connecting, cultures meeting, and friendships growing across oceans.

The student-led Interact Club works closely with the Warwick Valley Rotary Club every year on civic-minded projects that serve both the local community and communities across the globe. This collaboration with Hilltop Communities and its PATH initiative included working on what Dr. Esposito has called "the traveling poster." For the Interact Club, their first step was simple and creative.

"The students made their own cultural poster that represents our club, school, and community," said Ms. Fogler. "Our club created the poster and Dr. Esposito picked it up to deliver it to Honduras. It'll be shared with students abroad as a way to start building friendships. It's the kind of activity the students have loved in the past, and now two other communities have asked to connect in the same way!"

Ms. Fogler shared that the Interact Club students are already looking forward to more outreach opportunities coming their way from Hilltop Communities, via Warwick Valley Rotary, all of which will be connected to Rotary’s 7 Areas of Focus:

1. Peacebuilding & Conflict Prevention
2. Disease Prevention & Treatment
3. Water, Sanitation, & Hygiene
4. Maternal & Child Health
5. Basic Education & Literacy
6. Community Economic Development
7. Environment

Of course, these seven areas of focus, and many aspects of this specific activity, align nicely with the seven tenets of Warwick Valley Central School District's Portrait of a Graduate; none more aptly than the idea of preparing students to be Global & Ethical Citizens:

Ethical and Global Citizens are neighbors to the world, exhibiting empathy, compassion, and respect for others. They strive to understand a variety of cultures and perspectives outside their own, including language study. They consider the issues of the day through the lens of local, national, and global perspectives – from social issues to environmental issues. Ethical and Global Citizens must act with integrity, be community-minded and understand the foundations of our nation – both rights and privileges – and the responsibilities we share to others in the global community.