I spent Monday and Tuesday June 24 -25, 2019 with a team of students and faculty from Middlebury College – Vermont,  participating in the MiddCORE program. In my role as a mentor, I provided relevant feedback to students as they pitched their innovative ideas to become “part of the solution”.  And as a MIIS (Middllebury Institute for International Studies at Monterey) alumni, this was a way to give back by helping to build skills, opportunities and networks for leadership and innovation! The experience was transformational with the added bonus of nurturing new relationships, enjoying great food from the Asilomar Conference Grounds in Pacific Grove, California, and building community while sharing the mentoring space with my Opportunity Collaboration (OC) colleague Topher Wilkins. When I didn’t have office hours, I took time for selfcare,  hanging out with my three kiddos– Akweley, Akuokor, Tawiah who tagged along. Many thanks to Christal Brown for this wonderful experience and to Hawa Adam Thandwa Mdluli Saif Panday Noah Long. Needless to say I had a blast!