Our Story
In 2013, Bailey Ulbricht spent two months volunteering in Reyhanlı, Turkey, a small town on the Turkey-Syria border. She met with dozens of young Syrian college students desperate to finish their university degrees, despite the conflict in Syria. She began Skyping a few of them so they could practice English. Soon, other young Syrian refugees were requesting English lessons. Bailey asked people in her network to volunteer as tutors; she found ten tutors from her alma mater, Carleton College, to join her in the first Paper Airplanes English language program in June 2014.
Paper Airplanes continued to grow. In December 2016, Paper Airplanes received official nonprofit status in the US. In January 2017, the team expanded to include 25 staff members, and by June 2021, we had an active staff of over 45, many of whom were former students and tutors.
Cross-Cutting Team
Curriculum Team
English Program Team
We are a team of five individuals running a program that consists of two subprograms. The One-on-One program has about 500 tutors and students each semester. The Speaking Class consists of 35–40 groups.
Women in Tech Program (WiT)
Professional Skills Development Program
Communication Team
