On the road again: Bexley eighth-graders to resume D.C. trip in April
After three years of being preempted due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, Bexley City Schools once again will allow eighth-graders to participate in a field trip to Washington, D.C., next spring.
“Bexley Middle School has taken the eighth-grade students to Washington each spring for the past 20 years,” Superintendent Jason Fine said during the board of education’s Aug. 17 meeting. “This trip has not been possible for the past three years due to health concerns and travel restrictions.
“Our middle school team has worked with our families to assess the desire for the trip to resume and our families have overwhelmingly stated that they want this trip to return, and we also agree.”
The board voted 5-0 to approve the field trip. The information form approved by the board says the trip is the culmination of the middle school’s Social Studies 8 curriculum, with students visiting Gettysburg, the Flight 93 memorial and touring various monuments and museums.
The trip is scheduled April 25-28, Fine said.
District staff members will act as chaperones during the trip, with each staff member responsible for up to 15 students around the clock.
“They’re understanding that when they’re there; they’re in charge of students during that time,” Fine said. “There’s time when you are on the clock when you are not typically on that clock.”
Information from the district says the cost of the trip is $700 per student; the district’s Parent Teacher Organization has committed to raising funds to cover the cost of the trip for students in need of financial assistance.
“I’m really glad that we’re bringing this back and I’m not surprised that our community really supported that,” board President Victoria Powers said. “I’m very grateful to the PTO for stepping into that space to make it available to every student who wants to go.”
The board also approved changes to the 2022-23 school year calendar, making Sept. 16, Oct. 17-18 and Nov. 7 as staff workdays when the students won’t be attending classes.
The calendar also has been updated to reflect that classes will resume Jan. 3 after winter break. Classes were previously scheduled to resume Jan. 2, which is when New Year’s Day will be observed since Jan. 1 falls on a Sunday.
“We will work with our classified and certified unions to identify staff expectations on Jan. 2,” Fine said. “We will continue to work closely together to ensure all future calendars are clear and defined ahead of the start of the school year, starting with a close look at the (2023-24) calendar this month.”
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This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: On the road again: Bexley eighth-graders to resume D.C. trip in April
