Hello Global Glimpse students and families,
We, Farima and Kelly, are so excited to meet all of you soon and to be traveling to the beautiful country of Nicaragua together this summer!!!
Farima is 28 years old, and half Iranian and half Nicaraguan (from Bluefields on the Atlantic coast). She’s currently teaching 4th, 5th, and 6th grade in Hayward where she was born and raised and still reside in part of the week. She also teaches undergrads at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC) and is a full time PhD student there. Farima has had most of her credentialed, bilingual teaching experience in the Hayward Unified School District. Because she is a former student and graduate, she feels a strong desire to give back to her community. Farima has also served as a youth enrichment leader and director for multiple after school and summer recreational programs for teenagers.
For the past two years, Farima taught on the Atlantic coast of Nicaragua where her family was born, raised, and emigrated from. She trained, taught, and mentored student teachers at the Bluefields Indian and Caribbean University (BICU). Farima also designed, facilitated, and presented workshops for English teachers across Nicaragua and she collaborated closely with the Ministry of Education, R.A.A.S division.
Kelly is 38 years old and is currently teaching high school mathematics and working with EL (English Learner) students at the high school she graduated from in Castro Valley. She just received her Master’s in Special Education in December, and has taught in Special Education classrooms for many years too. Kelly is also excited to have just bought her first home in Alameda and is loving the fact that she lives so close to the beach and San Francisco. For fun, Kelly likes to hike, camp, takes photos, and spend quality time with friends and family.
For the past 12 years, Kelly has spent many of her summers volunteering overseas in countries like Costa Rica, Peru, India, Kenya, Haiti, Thailand, and many others. She has done everything from teaching math and science to dealing with the devastation of post-earthquake Haiti. Kelly is very excited and grateful to have found Global Glimpse so that she can finally share all of her global knowledge and travel experience with a group of high school students.
Both of us are very excited to be going to Nicaragua over the summer because we strongly believe that Global Glimpse will provide all of us with a rewarding experience to give back to Nicaragua. It will also provide us the honor of guiding and accompanying all of you through a life changing experience where you will learn the importance of having a global perspective in your lives. There is so much power in the eye-opening process that occurs through international experiences, which almost always leads to transformative reflections and life changes. We admire what Global Glimpse is providing for youth and teachers and are honored to somehow be involved in the amazing leadership that this experience fosters. You are all very courageous for taking this step, living your lives to the fullest, and taking chances to open yourselves up to this opportunity. We are very excited about collaborating with you, and definitely look forward to meeting you in July!
With Much Appreciation,
Farima P. Pour-Khorshid, M.S. Kelly M. Abbott, M.A.
University of California, Santa Cruz Castro Valley High School
Dept. of Education, Doctoral Student Mathematics/EL Teacher