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Second Thailand Global Leadership and Service Project takes shape.

In 2005, the Thailand Global Leadership and Service Project (GLSP) provided a life-changing experience for the participants—so much so that members of the International Business Honor Society (IBHS) immediately decided to return this coming year. They’re hard at work to ensure that the next trip—scheduled for March 16-27, 2006—is just as meaningful.

This year’s organizers have the advantage of being able to build on the successes and the lessons learned from the first Thailand GLSP. They are putting that valuable knowledge to work in the current planning, marketing, and fundraising stage.

The two sites from last year remain in the current plans: a day camp at an elementary school in t he Klong Toey slum district of Bangkok and a state-of-the-art campus of the Association for the Promotion of the Status of Women (APSW). Organizers will add a third site based on a mutual decision by IBHS and the ToCUsmile Service Club, part of the International BBA Program at Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn University (Chula).

IBHS students also are working on developing the curriculum for the school children, working in collaboration with the school in Bangkok to ensure that the lessons are at an appropriate level for the students and that they reflect the Thai culture.

In addition to members of IBHS, this year’s trip will include two students from outside the University who will undergo a very stringent application process. Bringing in students from other universities will enable the project to grow because they will take the knowledge and experiences back to their own universities.

Robert Hogner (“Dr. Bob”), associate professor of management and international business, and coordinator of the College’s Civic Engagement Initiative, commented on the impact of last year’s trip.

“We envisioned it as a community service vehicle for developing the values associated with global citizenship and global social justice,” he said. “We never could have anticipated the degree to which the experience could have met these goals.”

For more information about the GLSP, visit its web site. To learn more about the Civic Engagement Initiative, visit its web site.