International Travel Studies
When it comes to Altruism, we believe in living the values that encompass our school. Our International Travel Studies (ITS) Program is a year-long focus on bettering our local and international communities.
ITS trips are one of the highlights of the Calgary Academy experience since the first expedition in 2005. These trips aren’t simply vacations to foreign locations—the ITS program teaches students what it means to serve the global community.
While students see and experience beautiful areas and cultures, the trip’s focus is international work. This work begins for students at home before heading to their determined destination. They work closely with local organizations to demonstrate altruism—volunteering, participating in events, and raising money for charity.
A focal point for the ITS program is the idea of sustainable tourism—recognizing our impact as visitors, supporting the local economy, and addressing the host community’s needs. A portion of all ITS funds raised each year goes towards covering the cost of whatever supplies the partner organization needs, including paint, construction materials, and school supplies.
We frequently travel back to the local communities we serve, with the ITS program predominantly returning to Vietnam, Ecuador, Tanzania, and Morocco. Establishing partner organizations provides predictability for those in the countries we visit—they know we’ll return to continue working with them.
As a long time teacher at Calgary Academy, Kathy has been travelling with ITS for several years, having visited Tanzania, Peru, Ecuador and the Galapagos, Morocco and then a second trip to Tanzania. Along with traveling with ITS, she travels with her family to exotic locations such as Australia, Singapore, South China Sea, Komodo Island as well as various European and Asian locations. She loves to design travel journeys and believes the best travel begins with a good plan!
Join the trip of a lifetime!
Have ITS-related questions? Reach out to learn more about the program.