Casely Hayford traveled to the United States for the first time in 1920 with her niece Kathleen. She would make a separate trip in 1925 with her daughter Gladys (who would teach in her school) with the aim of fundraising for her school.While fundraising was her main goal, she also used these trips to study Western education to use their methods in her own school. She also spoke to crowds of people about her culture in ideas to garner support. This would help her accumulate donors to fund her school.