By Sarah Boyd | November 5, 2018
Supportive administration, eager faculty, World View’s framework, support and education ensure that Surry Community College is poised to continue to value global education. Our sustained partnership with World View will afford our students invaluable opportunities, preparing them for further education and industry.
Sarah Wright is an English and political science instructor and the Scholars of Global Distinction program leader at Surry Community College, which serves over 18,000 students and is located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Sarah is also a valued World View partner, World View’s global liaison for Surry and a graduate of (and elected class representative for) the 2018 Global Education Leaders Program. Her personal philosophy regarding professional development is to collect an idea at each program she attends to implement into her classes or share with her colleagues. “World View events epitomize those opportunities for learning and integrating information into courses,” she says. “They bring people together who may not have met before but have common goals and are student-centered educators at heart. We learn, grow and develop connections across the state and the entire educational spectrum.”
Sarah’s first World View program was the 2017 “Innovation and Technology in a Global Age” Community College Symposium. Because of that program, she says, “I was convinced that World View would be the key to helping faculty at Surry Community College implement courses with global focus and outcomes – I was right.”
Surry Community College became an official World View partner in spring 2018, and recently launched their Scholars of Global Distinction Program, which allows students to take globally intensive courses and gain marketable global skills. “We have recruited and enrolled 30 participants since the launch, and people are enthusiastic about the future we are building,” says Sarah. “World View has helped me hone skills to encourage our campus community to be involved in the efforts to facilitate students becoming globally aware. . . While we are a small, rural college, we realize our students need skills to communicate, collaborate and innovate with a variety of people.”
World View is grateful for Sarah’s commitment to global education, and we thank her for her persistence and passion. “This is just the beginning for us,” says Sarah. “Supportive administration, eager faculty, World View’s framework, support and education ensure that Surry Community College is poised to continue to value global education. Our sustained partnership with World View will afford our students invaluable opportunities, preparing them for further education and industry.”