Global Citizenship
Caring Participation in the World
Waynflete Students as Global Citizens
The Waynflete mission includes Caring Participation in the World as a core value of the School. The realities of globalization are calling for a new kind of student preparedness – one that arises from an emphasis on service, empathy, human dignity and community engagement while acknowledging our shared destiny. As global citizens, we face an unprecedented confluence of dwindling natural resources and seemingly unlimited technology; creativity, a sense of personal agency and persistence will be required to problem solve complex global issues. Our own students’ willingness to seek understanding, to collaborate and to communicate across differences will be a critical factor in their ability to impact the world in positive ways.
At Waynflete, giving back by intentionally drawing on one’s own unique skills and gifts becomes a gateway to caring participation in the wider world and serves as a meaningful antidote to the often overwhelming complexity and scope of the pressing global situation. The supportive school culture allows for students to be curious and take risks to expand their comfort zone through engagement with the wider world, and authentic dialogue with peers, adults and community members from diverse backgrounds. By recognizing the inherent dignity of every person and cultivating the seeds of compassion for others, Waynflete students prepare to live purposefully in the world, seeking novel solutions to the dilemmas facing the global community.
Waynflete’s EC-12 curriculum integrates a focus at every level on global citizenship by encouraging students to experience their impact on others and their individual power to make a difference. Whether students are talking about community guidelines, taking out the compost, or listening to musicians from a specific country during Lower School Global Focus week, students discover first hand what it feels like to contribute to the common good. Ongoing service learning programs in Middle and Upper School center on building lasting relationships in the Greater Portland area with social service, environmental and community agencies More than half of the MS and US student-led activities are focused around service, and these help to nurture a life-long ethic of community building. Courses in world literature and cultures are offered regularly through the English and History departments and students can meet weekly to discuss global politics in our Current Events or learn to negotiate as an ambassador through the Model UN program each spring.
Examples of programming that prepares our students to be Global Leaders:
Upper School
- Students Shoulder-to-Shoulder (summer courses in global citizenship)
- US Global Perspectives Activity
- US Current Events Group
- Girls Leadership Training Mentoring MS/US
- Model UN – US
- Waynflete in the World Alumni Speaker Series
- Maine Seeds of Peace Activity
- RAAW – Racial Awareness at Waynflete
Middle School
- Help Haiti
- Conflict Resolution Day
- World Peace Game Camp and Mentoring Program MS/US with Seeds of Peace
- Head Start Volunteering program
Lower School
- Global Focus Week
Waynflete Global Citizen Skillset
- Recognizes the inherent dignity of every person and further recognizes that we are all in this together as global citizens facing complex planetary crises.
- Has experienced “Caring Participation in the World” first-hand through a service engagement each year of study.
- Can articulate the importance of seeing the world through multiple lenses and holds a respect and appreciation for the value of self, others, and the earth.
- Feels a sense of belonging and purpose in the community and is empowered to continue making a transformative difference in communities beyond Waynflete through a process of planning, action, and reflection—a hallmark of experiential education.
