CLEARFIELD – The Clearfield school board discussed the possibility of its sophomore and senior high school students taking class field trips at Monday night’s committee meetings.
High School Principal Tim Janocko told the board he would like the sophomore class to visit Gettysburg and the senior class to visit Washington, D.C. He felt it was important for the students to see these sites first-hand and to help them to become better citizens.
Class lessons would be tied into the trips, he said. Janocko added he and the faculty would develop an itinerary and present it to the board once the class trips have gained approval.
He said the cost of the Gettysburg and Washington, D.C. trips would not exceed $10,000, which would be for transportation. He said they plan to try to secure funding to defray the cost of the trips.
“We’ve added the academic letters and are going to do some musicals and plays,” said Janocko. “But we’re not doing anything like this, and other schools are. I think it’s important to making our school a better place.”
When asked, Janocko said the class trips wouldn’t cost the students anything. He said they planned to take school lunches, as they currently do for athletic events.
According to him, he and board member Larry Putt plan to meet with area service organizations. They hope to work with them to hold fundraisers with proceeds to go toward the transportation costs.
Dr. Michael Spencer said the district had a large population of students who didn’t get to leave the area. He said they needed to experience Gettysburg and Washington, D.C. in-person.
Board member Gail Ralston explained that she felt the class trips were a great idea. However, she wanted board members to understand the precedence they were setting and to consider funding might not be available from the service organizations in future years.
Putt replied that they weren’t asking the service organizations for funding. Instead, he said they wanted to work with them to hold a fundraiser, such as a spaghetti dinner.
Spencer said the high school didn’t have a Parent Teacher Organization (PTO). Further, he didn’t believe the lower grade levels would be seeking assistance, such as the high school from the service organizations, for its class trips.
Board member Jennifer Wallace embraced the idea of class trips. She said even if the district had to pick up the bill, it would be for an educational experience for its students.