Service Vacations: Meaningful Travel, Global Learning & Community Impact | Globe Aware and Teachable Moments

Deep Understanding: Creating Teachable Moments with Kimberly Haley-Coleman of Globe Aware – Educators Going Global Podcast

Service vacations combine purposeful travel with hands-on service to create immersive experiences that foster cultural awareness, global citizenship, and lifelong learning. In Service Vacations and Teachable Moments, Globe Aware explores how these short-term volunteer travel programs become powerful educational tools for schools, students, and global citizens alike.

International schools are increasingly using service learning travel programs-often called “Weeks Without Walls”-to combine experiential education, global citizenship, and volunteer travel. In this episode, we explore how these immersive experiences can be designed for deeper impact with insights from Kimberly Haley-Coleman, an expert in short-term volunteer abroad programs.

Kimberly is the Founder and Executive Director of Globe Aware, a U.S.- and Canada-based nonprofit that has led short-term international service projects in over 25 countries since 2000. Drawing on her background in international business and nonprofit leadership, she shares practical strategies for helping schools create meaningful, ethical, and educational service learning trips for students and staff.

The conversation centers on one guiding question:

How can international schools foster global awareness and responsible citizenship through service learning travel?

 Key topics include:

• What service learning and global awareness really mean in practice
• How travel-based service learning supports student development
• Real-world learning objectives for international school programs
• Ways to enhance and optimize existing Week Without Walls experiences
• Tips for planning impactful student volunteer travel programs

This episode is a must-listen for educators and administrators looking to elevate international school service learning, student volunteer travel, and global education programs.