Congratulations, Jennifer Laster

Read about Jennifer's adventures!

​Upon receiving my first United States Passport stamp to travel to rural Jamaica in college, schools around the world have intrigued me. Now, 11 stamps later, global education has become a passion of mine. Like many educators, we realize our students tend to be in their own “bubble,” so the question then becomes: How do we foster a greater understanding of the world and the people in it? In April, I learned of an opportunity at Harvard University to participate in their Think Tank on Global Education: Empowering Global Citizens Professional Development course. After completing this course through the schools graduate program my work will benefit my school community by me being able to continue growing professionally in the field of Global Education. In July of 2018, I became one of 76 teachers in the nation to earn a Fulbright Teachers for Global Education fellowship. Having earned this honor I passed a 10-week online course, traveled to Washington D.C. for the Global Education Symposium, will be traveling to Peru this summer, and in August, will be submitting my capstone project. Participating in both programs will help assist me in creating a sustainable model of education that I can implement in my school. One of the challenges I would like to explore during my time at Harvard, are those faced in urban environments such as where I teach. I work at a wonderful, yet small charter school in Plainfield. We have a high immigrant population with many students being first-generation. Additionally, although our school is diverse, our students are still very segregated in their interactions with one another. I try to be the bridge all groups of students at my school, by creating an engaging, safe, and culturally sensitive/aware environment for my students, but I cannot do this alone. I want to help foster a school community with global competency being a priority, not just in my classroom, but to create a school-wide environment for global learning. I am greatly looking forward to sharing my knowledge with my Delta Kappa Gamma sisters after completing both courses.

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