When Susanna A. Jones became Head of School in 2007 at the all girls school of Holton-Arms in Bethesda Maryland, she wanted to help her students become citizens of an increasingly interconnected world. This led to development of the Global Education Program and the Online School for Girls.
The Global Education Program came to fruition almost by chance: “I just threw this idea out (that) ….girls at the end of their junior year (should) have an opportunity to go to places in the developing world and really be there.” The idea immediately took off. “Faculty responded very positively and were involved in the process of creating the program.” Since 2009, 311 girls have been on a Global Education trip.
The Online School for Girls is an initiative started by Holton-Arms and three other girls schools that helps girls to take courses in a virtual environment. “There is some research that suggests that the blended learning environment (using both traditional classroom and online educational tools) is the most effective learning environment…For girls it is all about relationships so you have to think about how you can leverage tools in a 2.0 environment (…to build relationships).”
Please visit m/Oppenheim.TV to enjoy our full interview with Susanna A. Jones and learn more about the programs at Holton-Arms School. As Susanna herself states:
“If we are going to educate young women who are going to be leaders, they need to have these kind of experiences.”
What do you think?