Global Glimpse centers around a three-week summer experience in a developing country (such as Ecuador, the Dominican Republic, or Panama), with an extensive curriculum covering history, politics, culture, poverty, business, education, and development. The program targets high-potential, low-income 11th graders who demonstrate leadership qualities and have a minimum GPA of 3.0; they are also required to conduct 40 hours of community service prior to the summer experience. Participants remain engaged in the program as 12th graders through one-on-one mentoring with the incoming cohort of 11th graders, community service projects, and supplementary academic workshops that emphasize college essay support.
Though not a traditional college prep program, Global Glimpse’s experiential learning program yields academic gains: 80% of participants write their college essay on the experience; 100% graduate from high school; 80% matriculate to four-year colleges, with an additional 15% to two-year community colleges; and 97% are persisting in college.
With our three-year commitment to expand the program as the catalyst, Global Glimpse is moving closer to serving 50 to 60% low-income and 40 to 50% affluent students (who pay full cost). Global Glimpse also solidified a high-level national partnership with United Airlines, which covers all air travel costs, provides additional in-kind support for program expansion through teacher incentive strategies, and invests in marketing to raise awareness around the partnership. In 2020, program revenue will exceed 55% of operating costs while serving 1,300 students, increasing to 58% in 2021 while serving 1,700 students.