Since 2019 the Humboldt County Office of Education has been building an important global education framework. The Global Classroom Connect is a program developed by HCOE and is designed to support the intellectual and social-emotional development of Humboldt County’s students and the professional development of its educators.
This framework is grounded in the four domains of global competence (Investigate the World, Recognize Perspectives, Communicate Ideas, and Take Action) and the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals. Working in partnership with the Taiwan Ministry of Education, Fulbright Taiwan, and Chung Cheng National University, this project seeks to expand opportunities for students and educators to develop international friendships and global cooperation.
To date, Humboldt County has well over 100 sister classrooms with partnering schools in Taiwan. In the summer of 2023, many of these teachers traveled to Taiwan to meet their partners in person and engage in joint project-based professional development. Partnering teachers and administrators from Taiwan visited Humboldt County in the Summer of 2024.
Moreover, other projects designed to broaden global perspectives are being built including clubs, Model United Nations, Mandarin language instruction, and more. The vision is simple: we want to build an infrastructure that enables every student and teacher in Humboldt County to have the opportunity to develop authentic friendships with peers around the world.
The Global Classroom Connect program has attracted American teachers outside of Humboldt County and is seeing participation from around California and several other states. For more information please contact Dr. Colby Smart, Deputy Superintendent at the Humboldt County Office of Education.
