How much communication will I have with my student? What are the classes like? What differences did you notice in your student after a semester with Verto Education? We asked our alumni parents to share their experience.
Video Transcription
Erin, Anya’s dad, Verto Class of 2018: [00:00:03] My name is Erin O’Connor. My daughter Anya went on the Verto semester to the Dominican Republic and Costa Rica. A tremendous experience. She grew and learned so much.
Matt, Verto Class of 2018: [00:00:14] My name’s Matt. I was on Verto’s Dominican Republic and Costa Rica semester and had a blast. And this is my mom –.
Ly, Matt’s mom, Verto Class of 2018: [00:00:27] My name is Ly and we are really glad that he went on the program with Verto.
Bill & Christy, Rayna’s parents, Verto Class of 2018: [00:00:34] Hi I’m Bill, Rayna’s dad, and I’m Christy, Rayna’s mom, and our daughter did the 2018 fall semester to the Dominican Republic and Costa Rica.
Why did you decide on Verto Education?
Bill & Christy, Rayna’s parents, Verto Class of 2018: [00:00:49] Really Rayna picked Verto, but I think the reason we were excited was it was both academic — she could get credits which was incredible — and it was learning by doing. I know it was perfect for our daughter.
What concerns did you have?
Ly, Matt’s mom, Verto Class of 2018: [00:01:10] Safety was my number one concern. I was probably the only mom that asked a bunch of questions because I didn’t really feel comfortable having Matt go out the country right out of high school. Any mom would have concerns, especially with the environment he grew up in grew up in. Everything’s been provided for him in a safe environment. His high school’s one of the top high schools in the nation so everything was provided. He wanted to go out of the country to a third world country. I was concerned about his safety, health hazards and all that stuff. So it was a big concern for me. But after the research and speaking to everybody on Verto — I have to give a shout out to Ben. Ben is great. No matter when I need to talk to him he’s always there. That was a really good feeling and it developed a trust in me that Verto really takes care of the students.
How did you stay in touch?
Erin, Anya’s dad, Verto Class of 2018: [00:02:19] So as a parent you send off your daughter to a far off distant land and you want to know what’s going on. You want assurances that they’re safe and that things are going well. The Verto people were really great, they immediately sent an e-mail saying you’re your daughter has arrived and we are doing this. They have an Instagram account which was fun because you would see little pictures here and there. I saw my daughter digging trenches, getting water to people who who need water. I saw her in a group setting and I saw her teaching weighing babies for health programs. It was really really great to get these little updates and to hear from the program because, as all you parents know, you can’t count on your kids to send you send you that information.
What were classes like?
Christy, Rayna’s mom, Verto Class of 2018: [00:03:23] There were serious academics — which kind of surprised me. We were pushing for the experience, but honestly at the end of the day it was a great dry run for getting into college. It was in an environment where Rayna was really jazzed and enthused by everything that she was learning, seeing, and reading about. The professionals she was meeting really compelled her to want to learn more. And so that is a great environment.
Did you notice any changes in your student?
Erin, Anya’s dad, Verto Class of 2018: [00:04:01] Did I notice changes in my daughter when she came back? Yes. My little girl had grown up intellectually and emotionally. She really had grown tremendously. Of course you never want them to grow up completely. She was still her same fun self, but the level of understanding, the type of conversation we were able to have, her confidence, her ability to speak to certain issues in an informed, educated, and confident manner — these were really really exciting for me as a parent to see. That’s what we want. That’s what we hope for. Our kids grow up.
