DESTINATION
WHY THIS DESTINATION
Italy was selected for its layered relationship between history, beauty, civic life, and conversation. Fellows encounter places where ideas, art, food, architecture, and human connection are inseparable. The setting encourages young adults to ask why things endure, how culture shapes judgment, and how curiosity becomes a form of leadership.
Renaissance Thinking
A setting where art, history, and inquiry invite Fellows to connect ideas across time.
Meaningful Conversation
Cafés, piazzas, and shared meals become spaces for listening and reflection.
Living History
Historic streets and civic spaces help Fellows understand continuity, judgment, and inheritance.
Navigation Challenge
Navigate independently through the city using transit systems, observation, and a paper map.
Outcome: Confidence & Decision Making
Conversation Challenge
Engage with local residents, ask thoughtful questions, and discover a new perspective.
Outcome: Communication & Curiosity
Observation Challenge
Study a neighborhood, ritual, or public space and interpret what it reveals about values and culture.
Outcome: Cultural Intelligence
Planning Challenge
Design a half-day itinerary that balances responsibility, curiosity, time, and group needs.
Outcome: Judgment & Leadership
Reflection Challenge
Translate the day’s experience into personal insight through guided discussion and written reflection.
Outcome: Self-Knowledge & Perspective
Confidence
Built through real decisions, unfamiliar settings, and evidence of capability.
Independence
Practiced through navigation, preparation, and responsible autonomy.
Judgment
Developed by weighing options, context, risk, and responsibility.
Adaptability
Strengthened when plans change and Fellows learn to remain steady.
Cultural Intelligence
Grown through humility, observation, and engagement across difference.
Leadership
Practiced through initiative, service, conversation, and group responsibility.
MORNING
Challenge-based learning with clear objectives, local context, and guided preparation.
AFTERNOON
Cultural exploration that turns observation, conversation, and curiosity into lived education.
EVENING
Group reflection and discussion that translate experience into judgment and self-knowledge.
The goal is to return home with greater confidence, stronger judgment, broader perspective, and a deeper understanding of who you are becoming.