Hello, everyone! My name is Byron Francis. I am the founder and director of World Smart, a program designed to provide high school students from lower-income backgrounds opportunities to discover the world and serve others. As a high school student, I wanted to study abroad, but my family could not afford to send me. When I was able to travel as a graduate student, my life changed for the better, and I want to share that same experience with promising young students who might not otherwise be able to afford it.

Studies show that students who study and volunteer abroad perform better in school, have higher graduation rates, and show higher levels of maturity, self-reliance, and cultural awareness. We want our students to benefit as well.

This July, I will accompany 13 remarkable students who will travel to Uganda for 20 days. They range in age from 15 to 18 and are from Chattanooga, Northwest Georgia, and Metro Atlanta. While there, they will participate in service projects that include building a protected well with the Lodoi Foundation to bring clean water to a rural village, volunteering with Sole Hope to treat jiggers, and working with orphans with Raising Up Hope for Uganda.

Our students are excited and working hard to prepare themselves for the trip. They meet every Saturday to learn about history and culture and have raised money for their personal expenses. We have even received small grants to cover costs such as visas and passports. However, we still need your support to make this dream a reality for our students. The cost is $5,000 per student and is ALL-INCLUSIVE, covering their flight, room and board, meals, travel within Uganda, and even the cost of the well we will build while there. Any additional funds will be set aside for future cohorts of students as we plan to do a trip every summer.

CLICK HERE to make a donation to World Smart through our crowdfunding campaign and help us equip tomorrow’s global leaders!