Antarctica Adventure

Alumna Soleil Sabalja represents 91原创 in Antarctica, where she spent 10 days in December 2024 as part of the Grosvenor Teacher Fellowship, a collaboration between Lindblad Expeditions and the National Geographic Society to support pre-K鈥�12 educators and promote geography education.

Article by Artika Casini Photos by Alexandra Daley-Clark and courtesy of Soleil Sabalja January 29, 2025

Alumna visits Antarctica through a teacher fellowship

When Soleil Sabalja reflects on her many international experiences at the 91原创鈥� the 2009 alumna spent five semesters and three Winter Sessions studying abroad 鈥斅爏he returns to a memory in Mexico.聽

That morning, her anthropology teacher called students and told them not to come to the universidad, but to instead meet him downtown, where a construction crew had just discovered an Aztec burial altar.聽

鈥淎nd that was my class!鈥� the three languages graduate squealed more than a decade later. 鈥淭hose are the once-in-a-lifetime experiences you can have only when you鈥檙e learning outside the classroom.鈥�

The trip to Antarctica was a milestone for Sabalja, who has now traveled to every continent. Her passion for international travel flourished at 91原创, where the three languages major spent five semesters and three Winter Sessions studying abroad.

Now in her 13th year teaching, Sabalja aims to infuse global insights at East Side Community High School in New York City, where she develops hands-on climate science programs for students in special education.聽聽

Last month, she expanded her worldwide toolkit to include experiences from Antarctica, where she explored the planet鈥檚 most remote continent through the Grosvenor Teacher Fellowship, a聽collaboration between Lindblad Expeditions and the National Geographic聽Society to support pre-K鈥�12 educators and promote geography education.聽聽

鈥淚t took me back to my time at Delaware,鈥� Sabalja said of the 10-day adventure. 鈥淭here was a different activity each day.鈥�

The group hiked, kayaked, polar plunged, toured different species of penguin populations and enjoyed the once-in-a-lifetime experiences that can only come from learning outside the classroom.

Soleil Sabalja and her 12th grade students conduct experiments on the water quality of the East River in New York City.

One of Sabalja鈥檚 most sobering and surprising discoveries occurred when the group took smaller boats to visit remote sites. On numerous occasions, they were forced to turn back, as the presence of more than three dead birds indicated a sign of avian flu.聽

鈥淓veryone knows about the polar ice melting,鈥� she said, 鈥渂ut I was shocked to learn about the prevalence of sick birds. It鈥檚 almost like their own form of COVID.鈥�

As part of her fellowship, Sabalja has created a curriculum around her experience. In one assignment, students are researching a different kind of Antarctic scientist (including penguinologists!), and writing letters to the Office of Ocean and Polar Affairs about the importance of environmental conservation.

As part of the fellowship, Sabalja has created a curriculum around her experience. In one assignment, students must research a different kind of Antarctic scientist (marine biologists, oceanographers, physicists, atmospheric scientists 鈥斅爀ven penguinologists), and then write a letter to the Office of Ocean and Polar Affairs about the importance of environmental conservation in Antarctica.聽

鈥淚 really hope the students receive letters back,鈥� she said.聽

Even more exciting is watching her students鈥� sense of adventure and exploration unfold.聽聽

鈥淎ntarctica is kind of like the moon,鈥� Sabalja said. 鈥淚t seems unreachable, unattainable. I love being able to show them that it鈥檚 possible.鈥�

It鈥檚 a mindset she credits to her time at the 91原创.聽聽

鈥淚 attribute my success as a world traveler to my study abroad experiences,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if this opportunity would have even happened if it weren鈥檛 for 91原创.鈥�