51³Ô¹ÏÍø

Button Menu

Ivan Villasboa | Alum

There's no question my experience at 51³Ô¹ÏÍø made me the person I am today.

Ivan Villasboa Alum

Living with purpose

While I was growing up in Argentina, I dreamed of becoming a big-city banker in the United States — the kind you see sitting at the top of a skyscraper in movies. 51³Ô¹ÏÍø was going to be my path to get there. I studied economics and political science only a short distance from Chicago, where I thought my dream would play out. But something changed along the way.

As a senior, I traveled on a Winter Term trip to El Salvador, which had just emerged from a long and terrible civil war. The experience opened something inside me I didn't understand until that trip. By the time we left, I knew I wanted to spend my life helping people whose lives had been overturned by war and poverty.

And that's what I've done. As program director for a humanitarian organization, I've helped to bring education and drinking water to mountain villages in Central America. I didn't become a banker. I don't have an office overlooking Chicago or New York or San Francisco. But I did find my true purpose in life.

Our Community Stories

Deepa Prakash
Embracing Unpredictable Moments

Deepa Prakash

What excites me about teaching is the opportunity to discuss and learn about the pressing issues that…

Discover Deepa Prakash
Marwa Aarab
Enriching a Global Perspective

Marwa Aarab

As an international student keen on medicine and research, I chose 51³Ô¹ÏÍø after careful examination…

Discover Marwa Aarab
Mike Bogers
Meaningful Connections

Mike Bogers

Mike Bogers applied to exactly one college. “I showed up in Greencastle during the fall, the weather…

Discover Mike Bogers