Mercerians and residents of Bogotá, Colombia, left an equally significant impact on one another during their three weeks together in the South American country this summer. During this new Mercer On Mission program, Mercer University students and faculty provided English language and technology lessons for a summer camp at a school in Bogotá.
This was the first time that an education-focused Mercer On Mission experience was hosted in Colombia, said Dr. Jose Pino, associate professor of Spanish and chair of the Department of World Languages and Cultures. The program was led by Dr. Pino; Dr. Craig McMahan, Mercer On Mission director, University minister and dean of chapel; and Dr. Flavio Campos, assistant professor of computer science education. Three graduate and 10 undergraduate students representing a variety of majors participated.
“I thought it was successful, but what’s most important is to hear what the (Colombian) students said, what the faculty said, what the principal said, and they were all very enthusiastic about what we had done,” Dr. McMahan said. “They recognized it was a first step, but it was really a terrific first step. I was very pleased with the success of the program, pleased in the fact that I think we advanced their knowledge and in the fact that we enhanced the capacity of the students and the faculty to continue to grow in those areas.”
Dr. McMahan said he visited Colegio Gimnasio Colombo Andino, a K-12 school, several years ago and thought it would be the perfect site for a Mercer On Mission partnership. It is a safe and well-organized school that caters to children with learning and developmental disabilities, which would provide Mercer students with a unique educational experience.
He and Dr. Pino worked with school principal Oscar Javier Silva Gonzalez for four or five years to iron out the details of how the Mercer team could best serve the school.
“I think part of the success of the program was — and it’s really true with all of Mercer On Mission — we listen,” Dr. McMahan said. “We say, ‘What do you need? How can we help you? How can we support you?’ And then we try to accommodate what our hosts are telling us so that it really is about them and their needs and their perception of their needs, and along the way, it’s a dialogue.”
The Mercerians worked with more than 80 students at the school, which is located in one of the capital city’s underprivileged neighborhoods. Their English and robotics workshops aimed to provide additional support in areas where gaps exist.
“English is spoken everywhere. In Colombia, it’s mandatory. However, not all the schools have the same resources,” Dr. Pino said. “It’s a very commercial area, so English is very much needed to help improve their life conditions and also to improve their businesses.”
Working in pairs, Mercer students created the English and robotics lesson plans, adapting them to different language levels while also making them appropriate for all ages, said Maria Bautista, a Spanish and political science double-major who graduated in May.
“Both the faculty and students at Mercer University were very willing to contribute their expertise and knowledge to the educational process with our students and with everyone we had the opportunity to work with,” Silva Gonzalez said. “They didn’t just conduct workshops; they also had the ability to humanize their activities, generating empathy with our children and youth. The academic activities also provided a very important sociocultural exchange.”
Silva Gonzalez said his students gained a new perspective on learning English as a second language, and his teachers learned new instruction methodologies and models. The children became less resistant to studying the language, and he believes English lessons will be more enjoyable for them going forward.
The robotics workshops were impactful for the students and teachers as well, sparking excitement in many who initially were uninterested, Silva Gonzalez said.
“Not all K-12 students in Bogotá, Colombia, have the opportunity to receive technology lessons/instructions. Therefore, our program addressed this lack of resources and support in the education system by providing robotics workshops,” Dr. Pino said.
The Mercerians donated eight laptops and two robotics kits to the school, as well as English and robotics teaching materials. Dr. Pino said the goal is for the work they started to be carried on into the future, so lives can continue to be improved.
“We are truly grateful to the Mission On Mercer team and Mercer University,” Silva Gonzalez said. “The experience was invaluable to us, providing a wealth of academic and cultural insights, not only for the students and faculty at our school but also for the entire community.”
The Mercer students were very motivated, showed tremendous growth in their teaching skills and gained valuable insights, Dr. Pino said.
“That’s why Mercer On Mission is a signature program, because it not only affects other communities and people’s lives and different cultures but our own students’ lives, their points of view, their cultural competence, their global understanding,” Dr. Pino said. “They realized how blessed they are.”
Bautista said this Mercer On Mission trip was a chance for her to take the professional work she has been doing and enjoying into a new setting. She served as an English for Speakers of Other Languages tutor during an internship with the Bibb County School District in the spring 2025 semester, which led to a full-time position for the current academic year.
Sharing lunch and bonding with the Colombian teachers was especially meaningful to her. Both Bautista and Beatriz Lleras, who is poised to earn her Master of Arts in Teaching in December, mentioned they were touched by the care Silva Gonzalez showed his students, a theme that echoed throughout the school.
“The love for his school, it hit all of us as students, hearing him interact with his students and the staff,” Bautista said. “I can tell that school is full of love and the love for education. It’s hands-on, interactive. It’s more like a family than a school.”
In addition to their work at the school, the Mercerians spent time with seniors at a nursing home and donated snacks to the facility. They also explored the area, which included hiking up Monserrate, visiting markets and historic neighborhoods, and touring Zipaquira Salt Cathedral.
Lleras, who serves as the ESOL coordinator for Dublin City Schools, called her time in Colombia a “holistic experience.” She was born in Colombia, and her family moved from Bogotá to the United States when she was 9.
“Although I’ve been back a handful of times to visit with family, it was a great opportunity for me to see the city and the country from a different lens than just going with family. I very much consider Dublin my community. But it was very fun to be able to go to my actual home country, home city to give back and have that experience,” said Lleras, who stayed in the country an additional week to spend time with family.
The Mercer On Mission experience also helped her better come to terms with her own identity.
“I think one of the biggest things was understanding that I don’t have to label myself as being American or being Colombian. I’m both,” Lleras said. “I think it was almost a way of allowing me to claim both sides of myself and understand how the American culture and influence has played out and also seeing how Colombian culture and things are still instilled in me.”
