Northport IB students returned from Global Leadership Summit; two finalists reached summit finals
Summary
Twelve Northport IB students attended the Education First Global Leadership Summit in Europe. Students presented design-thinking solutions; two teams with Northport students advanced to the finalist round. The district and trustees discussed cost, participation and plans to expand future trips.
Twelve Northport-East Northport Union Free School District students traveled to Europe this summer to attend the Education First Global Leadership Summit, a student-centered conference that combines workshops, international teamwork and a design‑thinking competition, IB coordinator Kristen Bridal said at the school board’s September meeting.
The summit brought students from the United States and several European countries to work in mixed international teams on solutions to a global problem under the theme “future readiness in a changing world.” Students used design thinking to create and pitch projects to panels of judges; eight finalist teams were selected to present to the full summit and one winning idea is slated for display at the Nobel Prize Museum in Sweden for a year, Bridal said.
“We had students from Canada, Italy, Germany, Spain, Greece. The kids met kids from everywhere,” Bridal said. “They dove right in.”
Student speaker Nico Escobar, who said his team advanced to the finalist round, described the experience as “definitely an experience I’ll never forget.” Escobar said his group pitched a projection‑based exposure therapy idea that incorporated AI, and that presenting twice in front of hundreds of students and judges helped his public‑speaking confidence.
Another student, who described a team project on an emergency “bag that turns into a bed” to help children entering emergency foster placements, said the trip demonstrated how teamwork and real‑world problems can be tackled without reliance on AI. Chaperone Greg Guido, a high‑school physics teacher, accompanied the group.
Trustees asked how students were selected and why the trip included only 12 IB students. Bridal said scheduling conflicts (band, dance competitions) and the trip price limited participation this year. “It was definitely an expensive trip,” she said. The cost reported at the meeting was $6,700 per student; Bridal said once that fee was paid additional on‑trip expenses were limited.
Trustee Dave asked whether students could fundraise earlier; Bridal and other trustees discussed building multi‑year planning so families and students can prepare. Bridal said she has already submitted paperwork to seek approval for next year’s summit, which will be held in Costa Rica.
Trustee Mike asked about the winning summit project; Bridal described it as a wearable assistive device that would use AI to recognize objects and speak them aloud for people who are blind.
Bridal said the district will make videos of the students’ presentations available on request; she said she has copies of the recordings and could distribute them to the board. Trustees expressed support for expanding international trip opportunities and for earlier outreach so families can fundraise over a longer period.
The trip included classroom‑linking experiences: students toured World War II and Cold War sites in Berlin and visited EF Tours’ offices and the United Nations in Geneva, Bridal said, linking the summit topics to curricular study. Bridal and trustees said the international experience also included downtime and social‑emotional activities such as kayaking and a ropes course in Switzerland.
