2340 - FIELD AND OTHER CORPORATION-SPONSORED TRIPS

The School Board recognizes the value of organized trips or other excursions away from the classroom as a valuable part of the School Corporation's educational programming and a valuable opportunity to obtain additional educational experiences not offered directly in the curriculum offerings. These opportunities occur in four (4) primary forms addressed in this policy: a) field trips; b) extra-curricular/co-curricular program-related trips; c) overnight trips; and d) other Corporation-sponsored trips.

Field Trips

For purposes of this policy, a field trip shall be defined as any planned journey for one (1) or more students away from Corporation premises, which is under the supervision of a professional staff member, approved by theSuperintendent and furthers or supplements an integral part of a course of study as planned and incorporated into that course of study by the teacher.

Properly planned and executed field trips should cultivate new interests among students, help students relate school experience to the reality of the world outside of school, bring the resources of the community within the students' learning experience, and afford students the opportunity to study real things and processes in their actual environment.

Out-of-state field trips that do not include an overnight stay must be approved by the Board.

Overnight Travel

Overnight travel is defined as a field trip that involves one or more overnight stays. The Corporation views overnight travel outside of the Corporation related to the curriculum/program as an adjunct to that curriculum/program. As such, it is an important feature of the overall educational program. The Corporation recognizes the importance of overnight travel outside of the Corporation to amplify and enhance studies that occur in the schools' classrooms through unique enrichment opportunities that are not available locally. Overnight travel shall be approved first by the Principal in accordance with the Corporation's overnight travel guidelines, and then must be submitted to the Board for final approval.

International field trips present special considerations that need to be taken into account when planning these activities. The Board must approve these trips to be considered Corporation-sponsored trips. The Board will approve only international field trips that are affiliated with a sponsoring or commercial organization that specializes in international travel and that is responsible for establishing the cost of such programs and for collecting payment directly from participating students or their parents. 

Approval of international travel also shall take into account travel warnings for Americans to avoid travel to specified countries. These warnings are issued by the United States Department of State based on current conditions around the world and are updated as deemed necessary.

Other Corporation-Sponsored Trips

Other Corporation-sponsored trips shall be defined as any planned student-travel activity that is approved as part of the Corporation's total educational program, but not a part of a particular course and not expressly connected to an established extra-curricular/co-curricular activity. These trips may include such trips as summer trip programs, youth service trips, and other types of day trips that are organized by or through school staff or facilitated in some fashion through the Corporation.

Trip Approval Process

No staff member may offer or lead any trip as a Corporation-sponsored trip unless the trip has been approved in the manner prescribed in this policy.

Proposals shall include the details and the cost of the trip, identify any third party entities that will be involved in the trip, identify the curriculum-based purpose of the trip, identify what students will be eligible to participate, and any other pertinent information. If overnight, the proposal must describe how accommodations will be provided and how such arrangements will be supervised properly.

A list of field trips may be approved annually. Each proposed field trip not so listed must be approved separately.

General Trip Provisions

The Superintendent shall approve all other such trips.

Students may be charged reasonable fees for field trips, but no student shall be denied participation for financial inability, nor shall nonparticipation be penalized academically. 

A professional staff member shall not change a planned itinerary while the trip is in progress, except where the health, safety, or welfare of the students in their charge is imperiled.

In any instance in which the itinerary of a trip is altered, the professional staff member in charge shall notify their administrative superior immediately.

Transportation for Field and Other Corporation-Sponsored Trips

Regular or special-purpose school vehicles shall be used for transportation on field and other Corporation-sponsored trips.

Transportation for all field and other Corporation-sponsored trips shall use vehicles owned or approved by the Corporation and driven by approved drivers. Exceptions must have the approval of the Superintendent.

The Corporation shall assume transportation costs for all field trips.

It also shall assume the transportation costs for all other trips, including co-curricular, athletic, and other extra-curricular trips.

Transportation may be limited by the availability of vehicles, drivers, and scheduling and will not be available when needed for general school purposes.

All field trips shall be supervised by members of the staff. All other Corporation-sponsored trips shall be supervised by either staff members or adults from the sponsoring organization. Any time students are on the vehicle, at least one (1) sponsor, chaperone, or staff member is expected to ride in the vehicle and to supervise students upon return to the Corporation and while they are waiting for rides home.

All students are expected to ride the approved vehicle to and from each activity. A special request must be made to the staff member or sponsor by the parent, in writing or in person, to allow an exception.

Corporation students not affiliated with the trip activity, incorporation students, and/or children of preschool age shall not be permitted to ride on the trip vehicle without prior approval from the principal.

No student is allowed to drive on any trip. An exception may be made by the principal on an individual basis provided the student has written parental permission.

The Superintendent shall prepare administrative guidelines to ensure that all transportation is in compliance with Board policy on use of Corporation vehicles and/or use of private vehicles.

Pursuant to State law, school buses may be used if the trip does not involve more than 200 miles of out of state travel.

Revised 3/19/13

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