The program was exactly what Trujillo-Reyes was looking for. Led by faculty directors Crista Johnson and Basia Moltchanov, the program offered students the opportunity to study Spanish and immerse themselves in Costa Rican culture for nearly four weeks.

Trujillo-Reyes took two courses at Universidad Latina de Costa Rica’s Heredia campus, and outside of class, he and his fellow Blue Hens enjoyed other immersive experiences: visiting the top of a volcano, touring an animal sanctuary and spending a weekend at the beach. But when asked about the most memorable part of the trip, Trujillo-Reyes doesn’t hesitate: It was the connections he made with his host family.

“When I had to leave my host family, it was heartbreaking,” Trujillo-Reyes said. “You build trust with them and a connection. So, by the end of it, leaving them was very emotional. Going into the trip, I would have never expected to get so close to this family that I just met.”

Every morning, he would walk to a nearby restaurant (owned by his host-mother), eat a traditional Costa Rican breakfast and then stroll through the streets to the bus stop. This daily ritual became an immersive experience in more ways than one. Each day, his host family would offer him new dishes to try, and in the evenings, they would discuss what he’d learned that afternoon. Quickly, they began to feel like a real family.

“I come from a Dominican household, so we eat rice and beans for dinner almost every day,” Trujillo -Reyes said. “But when I went to Costa Rica, they eat rice and beans almost in every meal, so my host mom was feeding me rice and beans for breakfast. That's something I've never done here, and at first I was like, ‘What? I'm not going to eat rice and beans in the morning. That's weird.’ By the end of the trip, I [realized I would] miss it.”

Other cultural differences were more profound. Trujillo-Reyes came to appreciate Costa Rica’s reverence for nature, its relaxed and sociable atmosphere and its commitment to global peace. (The country’s Constitution abolished its standing armed forces decades ago, a decision which many Costa Ricans still support, he explained.)

This sort of cultural immersion was rewarding on a personal level, and it also helped him to think about his future career. As a leadership major, Trujillo -Reyes knows the importance of connecting with others and making them feel comfortable. And like any good leader, he understands that one of the keys to forming strong connections is celebrating different backgrounds.

“Even small things—like the way we speak to each other, the eye contact we're making—can look different from country to country,” he said. “I feel that learning about different cultures will definitely help me in the long run, in any organization or any business that I'm leading in the future.”

Those eye-opening experiences were all made possible because of the Grimble Scholarship. The trip to Costa Rica was one of many programs organized by the Center for Global Programs & Services during the 2023-24 academic year, which marked the 100-year anniversary of study abroad at UD. Guided by a student-centered focus, the Center provides innovation and leadership to support UD’s global initiatives and campus internationalization efforts.

To support study abroad, visit udel.edu/academics/global or contact Sara Cellini at scellini@udel.edu.