Journeys to Solidarity, Leadership, Justice and Understanding

Reprinted from Traditions, Winter 2016-2017, Cait Heinz'05
March 4, 2017

Faculty Focus: Cait Heinz '05 

Cretin-Derham Hall includes two very important values in our mission: service and Catholic. I have seen these values firsthand on every one of the Justice Education Trips I have had the pleasure of chaperoning: in humble service, we help in whatever way we can, even when that is not our primary purpose; and our Catholic faith bonds us together in our as a foundation and a lens for our learning.

On these journeys, students are invited to experience a new culture and listen to the stories of people they meet. I have personally gained so much from chaperoning these trips and it has been an honor to guide students through the journey to solidarity, leadership, justice, and understanding.

Living Abroad Enhances Teaching and More

I graduated from Cretin-Derham Hall in 2005 and attended College of St. Benedict. For my junior year, I had the opportunities to live abroad for the entire year: Chile in the fall semester and Spain in the spring. I came from a life that was surrounded by what was familiar and comfortable. I was a St. Paul kid, from a St. Paul family, moving from CDH to St. Ben’s – a familiar route for many CDH students. Living abroad my junior year was an incredible experience and pushed me to live way outside of my comfort zone. There were countless moments that I felt defeated, unsure of my Spanish speaking ability, and surrounded by traditions and cultures that I was previously unaware even existed. For every one of those moments in which I doubted myself, I found strength to push through and see the beauty of the places I was living. Living abroad was an unforgettable experience and gave me skills to take down walls that are put up to separate the “us” from “them.”

Traveling abroad not only impacted me personally, it has, and will continue to bring a wonderful perspective to my professional teaching. As a Spanish teacher, my students love to hear the stories of how the language can come to life. My experience with the food, modes of transportation, holidays, and even the times where I learned how to correctly use a phrase or a word, all help broaden my classroom and show students how language can take you places.

Together we heard a story of a woman whose family “disappeared” during the civil war. Together we walked through the massacre site at El Mozote. Together we experienced unconditional hospitality from the El Salvadoran people. Together we brought our experiences and stories back to our lives in the United States.

Justice Education Trips Open Eyes

As a teacher, my own experiences also opened my eyes to the value of knowing, experiencing and respecting cultures that are different than our own to really expand our understanding of the world. The CDH Justice Education Trips do just that – they provide a unique view of world issues that goes beyond classroom learning.

Soon after starting my first year at CDH, I was invited to chaperone the summer El Salvador Justice Education Trip. That trip was a tough, emotional journey as we learned about the horrible period in El Salvadoran history, although it was elevated because I was able to share it with students. We were learning together, not only about the sad history, but also meeting with the kind people of El Salvador and experiencing the vibrant culture they were willing to share with us.

The generosity of the people we visit is unlike anything the students had ever witnessed. Senior Anna Erickson commented on her experiences on the Peru trip this past year, “They had almost nothing, but they gave us the best they had to offer. During our homestay, they gave us their only bedroom while they slept on the ground. They gave us the largest portions of food, and showed so much hospitality.”

That first trip to El Salvador would not be my last, as I became more and more involved with these CDH Justice Education Trips. I have also been able to chaperone other trips.

Currently I am working on a doctorate in education, and in an effort to make a justice trip more purposeful and reflective, a former colleague, Toni Fruth, and I created an independent study linked to a Guatemala trip we chaperoned.

We were able to examine the overall purpose of our short-term mission opportunities. So often, the impact that our trips have on the communities we visit is relatively minimal. However, the impact on the students is always significant and often, life-changing.

For this trip, we wanted our students to understand the history and culture of Guatemala and to be able to bring back their experiences and stories to their local communities. We designed the preparation of the trip to include readings about short-term missions and the impact they do or do not have. In addition, we wanted to include intentional reflections on the social systems that are in place that keep those in poverty from getting out of poverty. Students were asked to reflect daily on the work they were doing for the Friends of San Lucas Mission and any observations they made throughout our days. The students completely immersed themselves and were drawing connections to the systems in place and how to work toward alleviating the challenges they saw or experienced first hand.

At CDH, we are dedicated to educating our young people at a global level.

This article and more are featured in the Winter 2016-2017 issue of the CDH Magazine, Traditions.