What inspired you to work for NPH USA?
In 2018, the humanitarian crisis at the US-Mexico border was in full swing. I felt helpless, so I decided to return to NPH that summer as the international volunteer coordinator in order to recruit, support, and work alongside the inspiring volunteers and staff members that make up our organization.
Treating the NPH Guatemala volunteers!
What is your favorite part of your job?
By far, the very best part of my job is being able to work with so many inspiring, compassionate, and determined individuals who become volunteers. Their passion and eagerness to create change keeps me hopeful, despite how terrible the world can seem at times. One of the very best aspects for me is to observe these individuals grow as empowered, committed citizens of the world.
How do you use your education and international background in your current role?
I have a Ph.D. in Latin American Literary and Cultural Studies from the University of Kansas. Along with my long history and experience with NPH, I work to advise, prepare, and support international volunteers as they negotiate the new social and cultural norms that surround them during their time at NPH. I also work to support those same volunteers when they return home and experience "reverse culture shock."
What advice would you tell your pre-travel self?
I would tell myself to not worry about the growing pains that come along with learning a new culture. They will pass and I will be stronger for it. I would also tell myself to take in the beauty of the moments to come and to recognize the great privilege I will have of working alongside people from different cultures who have unique perspectives from my own and from whom I will learn so much.
What makes NPH USA special?
The NPH International Volunteer Program is NOT "voluntourism." NPH volunteers become members of the NPH family--they are not simply "passing through," but rather, they are professionals who end up learning so much from the local community in which they live. The main focus of our volunteers is serving others, rather than oneself.
Why should someone choose NPH USA over competitors?
If you want to give your time, love, and hard work to a meaningful cause and a responsible, well-established organization, NPH is for you. If you want to be part of a large family, who truly cares about the well-being of its members, NPH is for you.
Visiting my "girls" from when I was a volunteer! Summer, 2019
What makes NPH USA easy to market to potential participants?
NPH does not charge its volunteers. When I joined as a volunteer, I was a recent graduate with very little money and I didn't have the funds to pay thousands of dollars for a year of service. It also struck me as symbolically important that NPH didn't charge me to be a part of the NPH family. Not all organizations are able to support volunteers without personal "fundraising." NPH is fortunate to be such a well-established and stable organization that we can support our volunteers to the fullest.
What do you hope participants take away from your programs?
I hope that participants take away a greater intercultural understanding and a more acute awareness of their place in this world. I hope to see our volunteers truly affected by the many lives with whom they will come into contact. It's always heartbreaking to leave the kids and staff members behind after a full year, but that heartbreak is worth the amount of love that you will take home with you at the end of service.
How do you help support participants?
Before departure, volunteers go through a series of orientations for Intercultural Effectiveness, Intercultural Sensitivity Training, Country-specific Conversations/Prep, and one orientation on working with kids who have experienced trauma. During service, you have a country-specific volunteer coordinator who lives on-site with the volunteers for support. After service, we work to keep you connected to the organization and send out welcome home packets, full of advice for adjusting back to the United States.
Service Fair Recruitment Event, Fall 2019
What questions do participants often ask you, and how do you typically respond?
The question of safety often comes up and I always tell applicants that the different NPH homes are very safe. Of course, when traveling outside of a NPH home, you must use a lot of caution and common sense. During orientation, we give advice and expectations for volunteers to stay safe.
Why do you think learning a new language is important?
When you learn a new language, namely Spanish, so much opens up to you! If you are unable to speak Spanish, you miss out on those meaningful conversations that help you develop more profound bonds with the kids and staff. Learning a language influences your understanding of cultures and it also gives you the humility to see that you are not perfect, which is just fine! In short, it helps you to connect and understand new worlds in more profound ways.
What advice do you have for individuals thinking about going abroad?
E.M. Forrester writes: "Only connect!” That was the whole of her sermon. Only connect the prose and the passion, and both will be exalted, and human love will be seen at its height. Live in fragments no longer. Only connect..."
Go abroad and be adventurous! You will see how different and how similar we all are. Once you've lived abroad, your mind will be forever changed and you will gain a perspective that helps you see and understand the world and your place in it.
Go abroad and connect with new people with new passions and ideas. Of course, it will be challenging--growing is always challenging--but it worth it. Go and be changed!
What does meaningful travel mean to you?
Meaningful travel is gained only by giving. You must be willing to embrace and humbly try to understand all of the differences that travel brings to the surface of your consciousness. You must open yourself, admit what you don't know, and be eager to learn.
Antigua, Guatemala. On my 2019 summer volunteer visit to the NPH Guatemala home.
What issues do you see in the world of international education that don’t line up with your values and expectations for mutually beneficial & educational relationships between providers/programs and the communities in which they are located within?
Different volunteer programs have different priorities. It's so important to know what it is you, the applicant wants. And, just as importantly, you must be honest with yourself!! Is your priority to go somewhere new, travel, and site-see? Or, is it to serve others and learn from your host community? Either answer is fine, but you must be honest with yourself, otherwise you may choose the wrong program and be unhappy.
What does ethical global engagement mean to you?
Ethical global engagement can only be achieved by mutual respect and responsibility. Intentions are only part of the equation. One must be ready to learn, admit ignorance, and remain humble in order to engage with the rest of the world.
What qualities in program & host community relations are important to you? (And NPH USA?)
Mutual respect, humility, and patience are the most important elements for good relations between programs and host communities. Without these elements, "help" quickly becomes destructive and damaging to host communities.