While the state Legislature mulls over issues that affect public school students, the kids don’t sit around waiting for things to change. They grow up and move on, and sometimes they miss out.
At Kapolei Middle School this year’s eighth-graders couldn’t wait for the Legislature to undo the collateral damage of the state Ethics Commission’s ruling that threatened their highly anticipated trip to Washington, D.C. The issue might be fixed next year, but those eighth-graders will have missed their chance.
Kapolei U.S. history teacher Christine “CJ” Hill couldn’t see that happening to her students.
“I just didn’t want to give up the opportunity for these kids to go while the state is messing around with the bill,” she said.
The ruling came down last fall that public school teachers could not accept free travel while chaperoning their students on a school trip, even if they’re working with the students the whole time. Hill contacted her area legislators, the Hawaii State Teachers Association, school superintendents and the Ethics Commission to argue her case.
When January came and the trip still wasn’t on track to be approved, the Kapolei group decided on a different tack. The parents are handling it privately.
A mom of one of the eighth-graders stepped forward to run all the fundraising. “She’s amazing. She had done fundraisers for Project Grad for her older child, so she’s a veteran and highly organized,” Hill said. The activities include Cookie Corner sales, Royal Food sales, Jamba Juice coupons and a March 30 event at Teddy’s in Kapolei.
The trip was booked with Horizon Travel. The company gives one free teacher ticket for every 10 student trips. Three teachers will go on this trip. Unlike some other travel agencies, Horizon doesn’t give the teachers credit to be used on later trips or monetary incentives for signing up students.
The trip is scheduled for May 22-29. The school is year-round multitrack, so no matter when a trip is scheduled, some kids will miss school, but will be held responsible for assignments and tests.
As she has done in the past, Hill saved up her personal days for the trip.
“It’s worth it,” she said.
The itinerary will be the same as past trips and will include visits to the Capitol, Lincoln Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery and the Air and Space Museum.
Because the trip is not school-sponsored this year, no meetings can be held on campus, and the school’s name can’t be on the trip T-shirt. The writing assignments for the “daily reflections” won’t be the same since they won’t count for school, but the prime objective remains: to bring these eighth-graders up close to the things they’ve studied all year.
Usually, about 65 students go on the D.C. trip. This year, because they waited so long to see whether the trip was a go, that number is down to 32 kids and 11 parents. “But it’s a full busload,” Hill said.
Reach Lee Cataluna at 529-4315 or lcataluna@staradvertiser.com.
