VISIONS service programs stretch from Alaska to Montana and Mississippi in the United States. International programs range from the Caribbean West Indies to Central America, South America and Vietnam. We choose our sites carefully, with the long run in mind, typically returning seasonally for as long as there is need. Some programs offer language immersion. In many locations participants work and socialize regularly with local teenagers.

High school students have tremendous energy, empathy and enthusiasm. In a VISIONS program teenagers can use these rich resources to make meaningful contributions by accomplishing direct service for under-resourced cross-cultural communities. We plan our service projects in response to needs and desires identified locally and developed collaboratively. Participants learn technical skills, some that are ages old such as adobe block building and masonry, and usually see their projects completed by the end of the program.

Community service is the bridge to an equally important goal: to promote cross-cultural learning. We have forged lasting links to the communities in which we work, loyalties that translate into summers of depth and quality, and that promote dynamic learning about the cultures in which we live and work.

Each VISIONS program site differs distinctly from another, yet all share core elements, forming a framework that is uniquely VISIONS.

• COMMUNITY SERVICE
• CROSS-CULTURAL IMMERSION
• ADVENTURE and EXPLORATION