Students Shoulder to Shoulder

Students Shoulder to Shoulder We are a community of partners working together to inspire and support generations of ethical leaders.

Read our blog to find out more: https://shouldertoshoulder.com/category/blog/ Our programs put high school students shoulder-to-shoulder with inspirational leaders. They help us build the next generation of the world’s visionaries.

Day one in Panama with our Summer Search crew alongside GIVE & SURF
07/07/2026

Day one in Panama with our Summer Search crew alongside GIVE & SURF

Back at the hostel Alvaro and Coqui told us that the locals were hesitant about the Llama Pack Project. As Coqui said an...
06/28/2026

Back at the hostel Alvaro and Coqui told us that the locals were hesitant about the Llama Pack Project. As Coqui said and Alvaro translated “the locals think our mission is crazy, everyone thinks our mission is crazy”. Throughout our time registering the llamas, Alvaro and Coqui continuously made clear that along with our physical labor, our job was to show the locals that using llamas in tourism can be lucrative and that people really do care.

Today, we walked to where the llamas were and although the altitude made the journey less pleasant, when we got there we were welcomed by the llama herders dressed in their bright ponchos, offering their hands in greeting. It’s hard to describe the feeling of being on top of a mountain in the Andes surrounded by bunch of llamas, but if we had to try, we might say that you should imagine a small town in the distance, tin red roofs and grey granite walls, mountains rising into the clouds - higher than we’ve ever been in our lives. Seeing this world for the first time, it’s the feeling of doing something so different from anything you’ve ever experienced that you don’t even know how to process it.

We worked hard, grabbing llamas by the ears and fur, registering every detail. During the breaks the locals expressed that when we arrived they hadn’t believed that the girls on the trip would be able to handle the physical demand required in llama registration, but now, after seeing all of us working to register over three hundred llamas, they said that they were happy to have been proved wrong. When we were done, they expressed their appreciation and joked about how good Caileigh was with the llamas saying that she had earned her own llama named Gr**go. This moment was funny but also reminded us about the words Coqui shared a few nights ago....continued below

As I look back on the past few days, I’m thankful for the kindness the people around me have shown. I’ve had so many con...
06/27/2026

As I look back on the past few days, I’m thankful for the kindness the people around me have shown. I’ve had so many conversations with people so different from me, and yet as we share meals, and share music, and share stories, I realize our connections. I’m grateful to be in these wild, remote environments which have made all these connections possible. The mountains are calling- Logan C. And Thomas S. IV Llama Pack Project

Day three has come and gone.. tomorrow we head into the true wilderness (without cellphone service!) so future posts may...
06/22/2026

Day three has come and gone.. tomorrow we head into the true wilderness (without cellphone service!) so future posts may be delayed, but please enjoy tonight’s entry from our latest journalist…

Today, we embarked on a journey of knowledge and adventure. In the early hours of the morning, we hopped onto a bus to take us to the PeruRail in Aguas Calientes. When we arrived at the base of Machu Picchu, we saw the sun crawling out into the expansive mountains. These weren’t the green mountains of Urubamba, these were the rock mountains of the Inca. Little rays of light trickled down the grey mountain dappling the green base below. In this early morning, we started our hike up to the historical ruins of Machu Picchu surrounded by its little brother Huanya Picchu. Along with our tour guide Victor, we ascended to the viewing platform, which offers looks of the ruins, and we listened to a lecture about the history of the sacred plateau. Upon seeing Machu Picchu, I felt a sense of awe by witnessing one of the seven world wonders. We had studied it in AP World, which led to a personal connection between my school studies and my curiosity for ancient Incan civilization (I really liked that unit a lot!).

After countless photos and memories, we began our descent, either by walking or by bus. Either way, we all made it back down. After a long (and warm) ride back to Urubamba. We kicked off the evening with group hackey sack and reggae. Upon the conclusion of the night, we had an excellent discussion circle, where we explored the different types of travelers and celebrated our trip to Machu Picchu, as well as prepared for our journey into the vast unknown (to us) of the High-Andean communities.

Today, I learned that by embracing different methods of travel, you can have the most in-depth and culturally informative travel experience!

Awaiting the next trek,
Walker B.

Final Farm! Edible flour and Berry Farm. We enjoyed a farm to table meal – literally picking vegetables and then eating ...
06/20/2026

Final Farm! Edible flour and Berry Farm. We enjoyed a farm to table meal – literally picking vegetables and then eating them in our salad. After that we were introduced to Puerto Rican artist Jaime Suarez, who created the Totem Telurico at the Plaza, Del Quinto Centennial in old San Juan. He explained his process and the story behind the memorial.

Today was a day that started exposing us to the surrounding environment and culture that we will be emerged in throughou...
06/20/2026

Today was a day that started exposing us to the surrounding environment and culture that we will be emerged in throughout this trip. We all became a part of a new community whether we realized it or not. The smell of new foods filled the streets, while people crowded around the market. Kids and dogs ran freely while music played and dancers danced. There was some familiarity amongst the differences like the taste of ice cream on our tongues and the sense of community that we have already begun to create within our group. After embarking on the first of our many adventures, we had a peaceful end of the day spent in circle conversations and making friendship bracelets in the beautiful environment that the hostel holds. Today, we not only learned how to appreciate a new place and a new culture, but also learned to appreciate the cultures and places that we all call home.

Full of adventure in Urubamba,
Lily L.

Our first open enrollment group of Summer 2026 has landed in Panama to work alongside GIVE & SURF and support the incred...
06/14/2026

Our first open enrollment group of Summer 2026 has landed in Panama to work alongside GIVE & SURF and support the incredible teachers that run their after school centers.

Our group has been hard at work in New Orleans. This group of 25 freshmen has been working alongside and spent today v...
05/12/2026

Our group has been hard at work in New Orleans. This group of 25 freshmen has been working alongside and spent today visiting the

Day one on our Puerto Rico environmental science and sustainable farming program with at
04/06/2026

Day one on our Puerto Rico environmental science and sustainable farming program with at

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