KELLY O’CONNELL
University of Massachusetts Amherst, B.A., Psychology, B.A., Education

Kelly fell in love with traveling and learning about cultures during her study abroad semester in Perugia, Italy, in 2008. Since then, she has visited 30 countries across Asia, Europe, and South America. This past year she accomplished a long-time goal of walking El Camino de Santiago, a 550-mile trail across northern Spain. Kelly has worked as an international education advisor, preparing students to study in various countries in Europe and Latin America, and has also taught English in Madrid. She recently moved to Denver, where she will be pursuing her Master’s in School Counseling in the fall. In her free time she loves hiking, yoga, baking, and dreaming of her next adventure. Kelly has taught on the Pre-College at Amherst College program for five summers. She is fluent in Spanish.

SAM STICKNEY
University of Vermont, B.A., Spanish and Latin American Studies

While at The University of Vermont, Sam studied a number of different languages to ready himself for a life focused on travel and exploration. Following his studies, he set off traveling around the world. He nannied and taught English to elementary school students in Spain, led a study abroad trip for U.S. high school students in Mexico, and also worked for a tech startup in Chile. Now, Sam has created a digital nomadic lifestyle in which he spends part of the year in Florianopolis, an island in the south of Brazil, part of the year in New England, where he was raised, and the rest of his time traveling. He has traveled in 44 countries around the world, is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese, and knows survival French and Italian. This fall, Sam looks forward to his next adventure and more travel.