Class Year: 2025 
Program: SIT Panama
Identities I can speak to students about:
Mental Health
Program specific experiences I can speak about:
Homestay; Enrollment at a local university
Favorite experience:
My favorite experience in Panama was probably doing nighttime field work looking for amphibians in El Valle de Anton, although it is very hard to choose.
What course/internship experience during your global study semester allowed you to learn something new and exciting?
During our stay at the Naso Comarca, we had the opportunity to learn from one of the community leaders about the medicinal uses of many different native plants, as well as the variety of uses for cacao beans and cacao butter.
How have your global studies related to one of the 7 Enduring Skills?
My study abroad experience with SIT Panama taught me the importance of adaptability. Only a week after arriving in Panama City, I had to pack up my belongings again and prepare for my first three weeklong excursion. During this excursion, we hopped from homestay to homestay, stopping at the occasional hostel in between, the longest of our stops being only 3 or 4 full days. In the last part of the first excursion, we had our mangrove unit, where we learned how to do field work in the difficult conditions of a mangrove forest, while also getting caught in downpours. After this excursion, I only had a week back in Panama City before I was back on the road for another three weeklong excursions. In the SIT Panama program, you have to learn to adapt to constantly being on the move, and completing field work in the hot, humid weather.