For Karen Crowley and her three daughters—Shea, Robyn, and Grace—a belief in education wasn’t something that started with a single trip or moment. It was something built over time.

Long before her daughters became involved with School the World, Karen had spent years working in education and service, teaching, counseling, and volunteering in communities across the U.S. and Central America. When she first learned about School the World, its mission felt familiar.

“It’s always been a piece of my life… when I had kids, I just naturally introduced them to it.”

That belief—that education has the power to change the trajectory of a life—became part of how her family operated. Not as something formal or prescribed, but as something her daughters experienced consistently growing up.

As Shea, the oldest, reflected:

“It was definitely something introduced by our parents… I don’t even remember them doing it, which is how you know it.”

In the communities where School the World works, that same belief drives parents to take action in their own ways. Some, like Catarina, are returning to the classroom themselves, learning alongside their children and building skills they didn’t previously have access to. (Read her full story here.) Others, like Eufemenia, take on the labor of building schools in the community, even when others don’t think women should be helping in those roles. (Read her full story here.)

While the circumstances may look very different, the motivation is often the same.

Parents, everywhere, want more for their children.

For Karen, that belief didn’t stay within her own experience. It expanded outward. She didn’t just encourage her daughters to participate—she created opportunities for them to experience it and to bring others along.

Robyn, her middle daughter, saw that clearly:

“We went with a family friend… which I think is very emblematic of my mom—she’ll kind of pull people in.”

That instinct to build community and widen the circle shaped how each of the sisters engaged.

Grace, the youngest, remembers how quickly that sense of ownership took hold:

“It was fun to bring it to our school and try to get other people to do it.”

What began as an experience became something she wanted to share—an early sign that these values weren’t just absorbed, but carried forward.

For Shea, the experience came later, when she joined as a chaperone as a college student. Seeing the full scope of the work, from preparation to execution, shifted her perspective.

“I got to see the whole process—from the planning and the prep to the experience on site.”

It wasn’t just about being there in the moment. It was understanding the intention, partnership, and long-term commitment behind School the World’s mission.

For Robyn, the impact wasn’t tied to a single memory, but to the experience of returning three times, each trip with a different group and different family members. What stayed with her was the perspective gained across those experiences, something that continued to shape her path through college and into the work she chose to pursue.

Through School the World’s service-learning program, the sisters had the opportunity to engage more deeply with those values, meeting families, learning from communities, and seeing firsthand what it looks like when education becomes a shared priority.

As Karen described it, what stood out most wasn’t the idea of helping. It was the sense of connection and mutual learning.

“It wasn’t like… ‘look what good we can do.’… it feels more like it’s a win-win on both sides.”

That perspective, rooted in respect, curiosity, and partnership, is what stayed with them.

This Mother’s Day, it’s a reminder that the influence of a parent isn’t always something you can point to in a single moment. More often, it’s something that builds quietly over time through experiences, values, and the opportunities they create.

Sometimes, it looks like a parent stepping into the classroom as a student.
Sometimes, it looks like a parent creating the opportunity for students to learn in a safe and inspiring space.

In every case, it starts with the same belief: that education can change what’s possible.