- Our Mission -

The mission of The Step Outside Initiative, Corp. is to inspire young adults to discover their role in the global community by connecting them to meaningful cross-cultural engagement opportunities.

Our Website exists to provide young adults with the information they need to volunteer with confidence.

- Our Company -

The Step Outside Initiative, Corp. was formed in Februrary 2008 in response to the growing popularity surrounding international volunteering. We discovered that many 15-25 year olds were overwhelmed by the number of choices when looking for opportunities to become a pro-active member of our global community. At the same time, parents and educators we spoke to expressed the challenges they encountered in advising students - they often didn't have enough information to uncover the differences between programs, or the strengths and weaknesses of the options.

Step Outside aims to answer the questions surrounding international volunteer programs, inspire confidence in those already interested, and help those who aren’t discover the exciting world of global volunteering, service-learning, and more. Our experiences have taught us that hands on engagement is the best way to learn, and there is no better way to discover the many cultures that share this planet than interacting with them to acheive a common goal.

- The Founders -

Our founders, Patrick Scheld and Nathan Williams, both graduated from St. Michaels College in 2006. After spending time in the working world, they decided to pursue their passions for travel and hands on learning experiences and began researching opportunities to get involved around the globe. As they browsed websites and talked to others, they found that there were seemingly endless programs, yet little if any consolidated efforts to evaluate them; there were few resources to help young adults choose the program that best fits their skills and interests. This discovery inspired them to create The Step Outside Initiative, Corp.

Patrick Scheld Nathan Williams

Both Nate and Pat have been active members and regular volunteers in their local communities working hard to ensure that others who follow will have the same, if not more, opportunity. Nate got involved without delay by helping to bring a Habitat for Humanity chapter to his high school, while at the same time in his hometown, Pat was organizing volunteer trips into Boston to help with an annual Christmas party for the less fortunate called Christmas in the City. Both opportunities continue to be a big part of the volunteer scene in their respective hometowns.

In college, Nate and Pat remained active volunteers and got involved with the study abroad program at St. Mike's. Although attending at different times, they spent a semester abroad studying at the University of Salzburg in Salzburg, Austria. In Salzburg they took advangtage of their unique opportunity overseas to experience new culture, meet new people, further their studies, and travel extensively throughout Europe. This experience opened their eyes to see the world from a renewed perspective which they hope to share with the world and inspire a growing population of young adults, estimated at 1.2 billion worldwide, to 'Step Outside' and volunteer with confidence.

The Step Outside Initiative is the result of both Nate and Pat’s experiences and passions in life. They have developed it in an effort to ensure other young adults have the same opportunities to become a pro-active member of our global community. They believe that ‘experience is knowledge’, and they hope to inspire others to step outside their comfort zone, experience new cultures, and meet new people.

YOU can make a difference, and it can start right now...