2025 and Beyond!
Dear Friends of World at Hand,
I hope this message finds you well and that your 2025 is off to a fantastic start! As we embark on this exciting year, I want to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude for all you’ve done to help us continue building bridges to international education for low income and underserved students.
Whether you’ve liked and shared our posts, participated in Bridging the Gap auctions, contributed as a monthly or one-time donor, partnered as a business sponsor, or supported us through in-kind donations—every act of generosity makes a difference.
A Promising Start to 2025
Thanks to supporters like you, our year is already off to an incredible start! Here are just a few updates that have us feeling inspired:
Major Grant Award: We’ve received a pledge of significant ongoing grant funding beginning in 2026 from the Cyril Taylor Charitable Foundation (American Institute of Foreign Studies), allowing us to expand our reach and impact for years to come.
New Partnerships: We’re forging connections with study abroad providers and local universities to create even more opportunities for students.
Denver Presence: After years of running this organization remotely, I’m now based back in Denver, ready to deepen local connections and propel World at Hand to the next level.
Goals and Updates for 2025
This year marks an exciting period of growth as we expand programs, pilot new initiatives, and work to make a greater impact. Here’s what we’re aiming for in2025:
50 Passports: Doubling our current impact, we aim to help 50 students obtain passports through the GAP Program, opening doors to global experiences.
Statewide Information Programs: Expanding our reach to underserved rural areas across Colorado, ensuring all students can access international opportunities.
3 Study Abroad Scholarships: More than doubling our impact with life-changing scholarships for students to study abroad.
Refreshed Online Travel Academy: Updating our content to better serve students with accessible, impactful resources.
Pilot of the Post Abroad Program: Launching a curriculum designed to help students turn their international experiences into personal and professional growth opportunities to guide their steps towards future travels, graduate studies, or securing a job post-graduation.
Dreamers Program: This program was planned to be launched early this year, however due to changing policies we have voted to temporarily hold this launch until more is known of the new administration’s plans for DACA students. We remain committed to this program and look forward to revisiting it in the future.
Looking Ahead
This is an exciting time of growth for World at Hand, and we couldn’t do it without you. Expanding our sliding scale model, reaching rural communities, and refreshing our programs are big steps forward—steps made possible because of your generosity, support, and belief in our mission.
Thank you for helping us turn dreams into reality for so many students. Here’s to a wonderful year ahead, filled with opportunities, growth, and lasting impact!
All the best,
Shawn Wall
Founder& Executive Director
World at Hand
720-404-6332
Shawn.wall@worldathand.org
P.S. If you’d like to learn more about specific programs, fundraising efforts, or partnership opportunities, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We’d love to connect!