A SECOND group of students from Charlotte Latin School in North Carolina, US, has returned to SA to deepen their understanding of servant leadership by learning from local communities and organisations making a lasting impact.

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The visit forms part of the school’s leadership development programme, which challenges students to compare their own perspectives on leadership with approaches rooted in community empowerment.

Leading the group is Director of Student Leadership Development, David-Aaron Roth, who believes the experience offers students a valuable shift in perspective. While in Durban, the group visited The Domino Foundation’s Babies’ Home, returning after a similar visit in 2025.

“We were with the NPO last year and are back so our students can experience the paradigm shift from what they know from home to one in which local communities help to build each other up,” said Roth.

He added that international visitors, despite having good intentions, can sometimes arrive with a “saviourist” mindset, believing they know what is best to solve another society’s challenges.

“That is not the type of student Charlotte Latin is trying to develop,” he said.

Following last year’s visit, students returned home with a renewed appreciation for South Africa’s resilience and generosity, choosing to celebrate the goodness they had experienced rather than focusing on the country’s well-known social and economic disparities.

This year’s group echoed those sentiments, saying the community-driven approach they witnessed offered an important lesson in leadership and empowerment.

In recognition of the work being done to nurture future leaders in SA, the Charlotte Latin delegation concluded their visit with a generous donation towards The Domino Foundation’s ongoing programmes.

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