The School for Ethics and Global Leadership

SEGL in Rwanda

Dates: July 19-August 2, 2026

This summer, SEGL is returning to Rwanda with Carl Wilkens! Carl, the only American to stay behind during the 1994 genocide, has met and shared his deeply meaningful story with each SEGL student since the School’s inception.

Now SEGL graduates have the opportunity of a lifetime: to travel to Rwanda with Carl. Carl accompanied us on our previous trips to Rwanda in 2012, 2015, 2018, and 2023. To see a short video recap of our 2012 trip, click here.

Carl Wilkens, one of the trip leaders and founder of World Outside My Shoes, meets with students during the 2018 SEGL in Rwanda trip.

About the Trip

What are the warning sides of genocide? What are the best ways to recover from genocide? What, if anything, should the United States - in the Trump Era and beyond - do to prevent and address future genocides? To help Rwanda recover?

Our trip will launch from a U.S. gateway airport (to be determined based on participation location). We will fly from the U.S. to Kigali, the capital of Rwanda and center of the genocide. From a base at the Iris Guest House (our home for our last three trips), we will travel around the city and the country to see memorials, visit key places mentioned in I’m Not Leaving, Carl’s memoir, and meet with community and government leaders. Nightly reflection sessions will help us process what we have learned and look toward the future.

Representative itinerary stops (actual itinerary may vary) include:

At the conclusion of the trip, each participant will craft and present a Credo based on their journal entries from the trip, and draft a collaborative op-eds and/or policy memo with recommendations for U.S. and/or Rwanda-based stakeholders. These projects are designed to 1) complement your previous SEGL experience and 2) demonstrate interest in Rwanda and relevant areas of study for college, graduate school, and beyond.

Please note that the information on this page is subject to change as we work to make this unique trip safe, healthy, and meaningful.

Trip Dates

Flights will leave our gateway airport on Sunday, July 19 and return to the U.S. on Sunday, August 2. (Please note that some return flights to the West Coast may extend to the early morning of August 3rd.)

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Trip Leaders

Two experienced SEGL faculty members (each of whom is also an SEGL graduate) will co-lead this trip with Carl: SEGL Director of Advancement Caitlin Forrest (Spring `10) and SEGL in DC Residential Dean Courtenay Kim-White (Fall `18). Both are experienced travelers and well-trained in SEGL's safety protocols.

Before coming to SEGL, Caitlin worked as the Director of the Renew Democracy Initiative's Frontlines of Freedom (FOF) program, which focused on amplifying dissident voices and building communities resilient to authoritarian influence. She also spent several years at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) in nonprofit management and operations, as well as a Research Analyst covering the Taliban and ISIS in Afghanistan. She published ISW’s Afghanistan Threat Assessment map series, and her work has been featured in the New York Times, the Washington Post, Reuters, and others. She also has worked at NPR and the Council for Children's Rights. She is a Spring 2010 graduate of SEGL and a graduate of Wake Forest University (where her majors included Politics, International Affairs, and French, one of Rwanda's official languages).

Courtenay graduated from Georgetown University with a major in Honors Government and a minor in Classics. Her research explores the intricacies of sex and gender in both antiquity and the modern world, tracking the appropriation of ancient Roman sources by far-right and incel internet communities in backlash to the women’s movement. In recent years, she has worked at the National Legal Aid & Defenders Association and as a Teaching Apprentice with DC’s Shakespeare Theater Company. A seasoned world traveler, her global adventures have taken her to points in Europe, Asia, and the Americas. Courtenay is also a proud alumna of SEGL.

Special Note

Participants should be emotionally prepared to confront challenging subject matter, including graphic, first-hand images and stories from the genocide. We ask that families work with us to ensure a supportive transition home.

Participants (and, as appropriate, parents/guardians) should research and be aware of potential risks associated with travel to foreign countries, including Rwanda. Information from the U.S. State Department is available here. Note that we will not travel to areas that the State Department advises against, and that Rwanda's current alert warning is in the same category ("Level 2") as the UK and South Africa (the homes of SEGL's semester programs), as well as many other countries.

Tuition & Financial Aid

Tuition is $7,750 (includes airfare) plus vaccination/medication costs (check with your healthcare provider).

A limited amount of financial aid is available; we will work with applicants in need of financial aid to help secure the necessary funds. Depending on availability, students should expect the same percentage of aid they received to attend SEGL, after a minimum family contribution.

To Apply

The priority application deadline for SEGL graduates is February 11th. (Applications received before this date will receive a reply within one week.) After February 11th we will open a limited number of spots to Spring 2026 students. To assist with booking travel and lodging, please tell us as soon as possible if you plan to apply.

To apply, fill out the Google form here.

Questions?

As we get closer to our departure, we will share additional details that will help ensure the experience is safe, healthy, and meaningful. Please contact Courtenay Kim-White at courtenay.kimwhite@schoolforethics.org with questions. Check this page for further updates in the coming months!