Palmer Trinity School

Wanting to get more involved, Bacardi became Chairperson of Round Square and Global Collaborations and helped organize and moderate PTS' Folklore & Legends conference. "As students from around the world shared their perspectives on this topic, it made me truly realize that there is nothing insignificant in this world and that countries are more closely linked than I had initially thought," she said. Tyler McCray '22 was also among the first middle school students to go on a Young Round Square trip when he went to India in 2018. Moving to virtual Round Square conferences gave him the opportunity to continue to participate and stay globally connected. "Round Square allows me to continue to connect with other students about any topic, even if it's through a computer screen," said Tyler. "That social interaction and the coming together of minds that you may not really get anywhere outside of the conference is refreshing. Seeing people have differences of opinion, but still able to come together and find a common solution, makes me happy. We need more of that in today's world." Classmate Diego Cano '22 got involved with Round Square for the first time as a delegate for the PTS Folklore & Legends conference. Along with fellow first-time delegates Gabriella Cruz '22, Marcos Leon '22, Maria Munilla '22 and Carlos Penzini '22, he led our virtual Baraza group discussions. (The word "Baraza" is Swahili and means "the coming together of different people." These Baraza discussions are led by a student leader, dig deep into the greater conference topic and enable conversations where everyone's opinion is valued equally.) "I enjoyed leading the breakout rooms, as I was able to ask these international students about their lives and the different experiences they had," said Diego. Over the last six months, PTS delegates have participated in six virtual Round Square conferences and hosted one. Next up is a virtual conference with a school in Australia titled "Feminism Around the World." While we are all counting down the days until it is safe to travel and participate in in-person conferences again, for the time being, staying connected virtually is definitely the next best thing. As students from around the world shared their perspectives on this topic, it made me truly realize that there is nothing insignificant in this world and that countries are more closely linked than I had initially thought." Above – Scotland Left – Zoom, Folklore invitation combined S U MME R 2 0 2 1 29

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