All Watkinson students learn from a global perspective. Those seeking specialized study can apply in grade 10 or fall trimester grade 11 for a special diploma in global studies. The diploma program is intellectually challenging. Students and parents should be aware that the program’s rigor demands a substantial commitment of time and energy. 
 

Service and learning trips form an important part of Global Studies diploma education. Students have the opportunity to travel to Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic and Uganda. Just this year, Watkinson students have worked at a medical clinic and built houses for sugar cane workers in the DR, taught English, math and computer skills to children in Uganda, and built sheltered bus stops for indigenous people in Costa Rica.

 

Global Studies students also attend academic events close to home and on campus. In fall, 2017, students Skyped with Adam Alter, the author of their summer read, Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology and the Business of Keeping Us Hooked, and hosted Caitlin Wolfe, a public health epidemiologist who worked in Liberia during the Ebola crisis. Past speakers have included Pulitzer-Prize winning war correspondent Dexter Filkins and a second Pulitzer winner, Chris Hedges, who lectured on inequality in America and read from his recent book Days of Destruction, Days of Revolt.
 

In addition, students take field trips in support of program themes. These encompass legislative sessions in Hartford, dance performances, museums, and lectures. Recent events include attending the CT Forum’s evening with Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, the Global Security Forum hosted by the World Affairs Council of Connecticut, and a talk by artist Glenn Ligon on race and art in America at the Wadsworth Atheneum. Other events include the performance of Bangskol: A Requiem for Cambodia with our partner organization, Cambodian Living Arts, at the Brooklyn Academy of Music as well as many more events this year.
 

Service is an integral part of the Global Studies Program and connects the students with people around the world through our service learning trips and in our city of Hartford. Students regularly work with the South Park Inn, a homeless shelter in the Parkville section of the city and participate in Park Street cleanups held by the Spanish American Merchant Association.

The Global Studies program aims to put students in direct contact with the finest minds available relevant to program themes and to break down barriers between classroom learning and the larger world.
 

Global studies students leave Watkinson with a confidence derived from understanding the dynamics of world affairs. In senior year, the global studies seminar allows deep study of one program theme. Students design a project for learning about a theme of their choice and share their expertise with the community.
 

Global studies students often go on to study international relations, history, environmental science, and the arts in college. They tend to travel widely and speak more than one language. They pursue careers in government, the arts, non-government agencies, law, academics, medicine, and business.