Take a Trip

I remember a conversation I had with a little while back with a recently graduated student during softball season and her overwhelming joy and anticipation about an upcoming trip that her family had planned between the end of softball and the start of school.  Adding to her excitement was the fact that her family had never taken a trip like that before.  If I remember correctly, the plan was to drive west through Colorado and the Rocky Mountains, through Utah and Nevada and into northern California.  She was particularly excited about seeing San Francisco and Yosemite, as well as Napa Valley.  I shared some “must see” experiences for San Francisco, and then added more when she explained that they would also head down the coast to southern California and work their way home through Las Vegas.  So much to see and so much excitement!

Traveling is something that both my wife and I love to do, as well as something we have done with our kids.  We have made a point to turn some of our business trips into family vacations when we can, and we have also taken advantage of other opportunities when they have come up.  When our kids were very small we made a decision that we wanted them to see what is out there and to experience all there is in the world, starting with this incredible country we live in.  Yes, there were some miserable moments when they were younger and not too tolerant of long rides in the backseat of the car.  A trip to the Black Hills stands out!  And there were times when my frustrations boiled over as well, as the other three members of my family can attest.  But this part of one of my fundamental philosophies of education: Don’t let school get in the way of your education.  Now I understand that sounds strange coming from a principal, but it is something that I strongly believe and something that was instilled in me by my parents.  You see, there is so many different things out there that we can learn about, but we have to get out and experience them, and in my opinion, we are short-changing ourselves when we don’t.

I get it that not all families can afford fancy vacations, and while it is hard for some people to believe, we have students at NFVHS that have never been to Des Moines, have not been out of the state of Iowa, nor ever spent a night in a hotel.  It is for that reason that I am thoroughly impressed with the travel opportunities we have for students at our school, and I sincerely wish we could make sure that every student has a chance to go on at least one of them.  In fact, in one of those conversations I had with Mr. Willhite late on a Friday afternoon when we apparently didn’t have anywhere better to go, we discussed how we might add even more opportunities than what we currently have for students.  Is that part of our educational mission?  Is that something that would benefit the both the students and the academic program at our school?  Is it even possible?

I always hesitate to make lists because without a doubt, I will leave something out.  But I think I can come close to trips that we offer.  Spanish students go to Costa Rica every two years.  Any student can apply to go to Uberlingen, Germany every other year.  Seniors that take four years of math, science, or art can spend a couple of days in Chicago.  The band and chorus take a trip every couple of years to a city, including Washington, DC, Kansas City, and St. Louis in recent years.  Some FFA kids have a chance to go to their national convention in either Indianapolis or Louisville, and other go to Ames for the state convention.  Some business students took a day trip to Minneapolis this past year.  Yes, each trip has “strings” or qualifications, but for most students, there is one that nearly every student could qualify for.

My parents made a point of including educational aspects to all of our vacations, and we do the same on the ones we take with our kids.  Obviously the school trips do the same.  Yes, they cost money and that can be a barrier.  I would like to think we could overcome that so we don’t have students who have never left Iowa or spent a night in a hotel before they graduate from high school.