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Lara Bergthold | Student, 1985
Alumni Spotlight | May 11, 2020
On Close Up, Lara Bergthold remembers being with students from other schools and learning about their backgrounds. She remembers visiting Washington, DC, being at the monuments, staying in a hotel, and hearing from speakers. But Bergthold was most excited to hear from women working in DC, and coming to understand all of the barriers they […]
Sheila Babauta | Student 2005
Alumni Spotlight | May 6, 2020
When Sheila Babauta’s high school counselor introduced her to Close Up, she wasn’t sure what to expect from the trip. Her older sister had gone on Close Up, and all she knew was that she would fly very far away and visit a lot of interesting places with her friends. Coming from a small community […]
Louis Aguirre | Student 1984
Alumni Spotlight | February 12, 2020
For Louis Aguirre, the Close Up experience helped bring academics and history off the pages of textbooks and into real life. Hearing from young professionals and learning about their passions helped solidify Aguirre’s aspirations to become a journalist, and seeing artifacts of history first-hand and standing in historical sites had a more profound impact on […]
Bryan Henry | Teacher 2015, 2018, 2019
Alumni Spotlight | February 3, 2020
Bryan Henry began his Close Up experience as a teacher, bringing students from Kingwood High School in Texas. At the time, he was an AP U.S. Government teacher who was focused on helping his students not only pass the AP exam, but understand how to engage with history long after the exam. As an educator […]
Loaitza Esquilin-Garcia | Student 2001
Alumni Spotlight | November 19, 2019
Participating in Close Up was the first time Loaitza Esquilin-Garcia traveled without her family, and her first experience on an educational trip. When her brother attended a few years before her, she was not sure why middle schoolers could not attend. Her family emphasized the importance of building her language skills and doing well in […]
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