Alexis Beckwith

Class year:  2014

Major(s):  Spanish and Global Studies

Minor(s): Caribbean & Latin American Studies

Alumni Biography: 

Since graduation, I've been living in Boston, MA, working at EF Education First, an educational travel company that prides itself on opening the world through education. We have schools and offices worldwide, whose goal is to break down barriers via travel, language, and cross-cultural learning. Having studied foreign language (Spanish) throughout my time at St. Lawrence, and of course, given the opportunity, I had to study for a year in Madrid, Spain, the company's values and my own aligned perfectly, and I've been there for about 3 and a half years now!

I spent two years of that time working directly with middle and high school teachers in northern Alabama to plan educational trips abroad with their students, consulting with them to find the best fit possible, then support them throughout the planning process right through to the time of travel. Watching theirs and their students' goals come to fruition then their on-tour experiences was absolutely inspiring; for many of them, this was their first time abroad or witnessing varying languages, cultures, and sights!

While working with teachers I was able to use my language abilities to assist with the region of Puerto Rico for a time, as well as communicate with native Spanish speakers throughout the territories I was responsible for. My favorite thing was to surprise them with my Spanish at the very end of the call, and hear the change in their voice, the excitement at someone being able to communicate with them on a different level. 

I now work in tour logistics, buttoning up operations pieces and consulting between departments to ensure our customers have amazing on-the-ground experiences. I function as worldwide communications between various stakeholders, many of which are Spanish speakers in our offices around the world- that ability fosters a true sense of trust between my colleagues and myself, and quite often allows me to see a completely different side of a person!