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1995-2000


 
New York City
December 2001

The Makulu II: The Field Trip to End All Field Trips
By Tom Kertes

More than 600 students from 20 New York inner-city elementary classrooms are going to be fortunate enough this year to have the Reach the World Company reach the world for them.

Reach the World (RTW) sponsors the Makulu II, a rugged Nautor Swan ketch that just sailed from Manhattan’s 79th Street Boat Basin for a 26-month voyage around the globe. Though the 43-foot boat appeared shockingly small in the vastness of the surrounding waters—and, for the launch, we’re only talking about the Hudson River —it aims to accomplish a truly enormous task.

“I love history and always wanted to learn about it by sailing around the world,” said RTW President Heather Halstead. “And since I graduated from Dartmouth–perhaps the most technologically advanced college in the country – I figured that by the use of technology and telecommunication tools aboard the boat,
we could bring the entire world to children
who otherwise would not have the opportunity to experience much of it outside of their
immediate neighborhood.”

Halstead feels that, given the current world situation, the mission of the Makulu II may be more essential than ever.

“In light of what we now face, there may be no more important long-term goals than to educate children about the cultures, environments, and traditions that populate our world. It’s only through the teaching of tolerance and global understanding that we will prepare them for the heavy responsibilities they must bear in the future,” she said.

“Students are confused and scared,” said 23 year-old Captain Erin Myers. “It’s important for them to understand that we’re all part of a global community.”

Myers, Halstead’s fellow Dartmouth graduate, is one of the five brand new crewmembers embarking on the boat’s second global trip. It will cover 27,000 miles over three oceans and six seas, while making stops in 36 countries.

“This trip is much better organized,” Halstead pointed out, “because we’ve learned from the experience of the first voyage.” The crewmembers come from varied educational and academic backgrounds and are ready to put themselves and their skills to the test as field educators for hundreds of deserving children.”

The ultra-committed crew, serving as adventurer-educators who will create a “virtual classroom” on the boat, is taking two years-plus to experience this “ once in a lifetime” voyage. The youthful quintet – not one is over 28 – will gather information en route and transmit it to students and teachers via the Internet and the project’s website (www.reachtheworld.com). Students can transmit and receive messages within a weekly framework, as well as track the boat’s progress on the RTW website. Reach the World will also provide special educational materials and create new projects as the voyage unfolds. Teachers can build lessons around the boat’s voyages.

Famed broadcaster and RTW Advisory Board member, Walter Cronkite, was the Master of Ceremonies at the Makulu II’s wonderful bon voyage party. “The current world situation only proves that we need to know far more about people around the world than we do now,” he said. “This wonderful educational adventure will accomplish this for thousands of schoolchildren.”

“Fair winds and good going, Makulu II.”#

 

Education Update, Inc., P.O. Box 20005, New York, NY 10001. Tel: (212) 481-5519. Fax: (212) 481-3919. Email: ednews1@aol.com.
All material is copyrighted and may not be printed without express consent of the publisher. © 2001.




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