Jessieville students to travel to Spain

JESSIEVILLE — A change in destination will have students from Jessieville and other schools traveling to Spain in July 2019.

Jessieville High School social studies teacher Alex Bates held a recruitment meeting Thursday to provide interested students with more information about the nine-day trip.

Four adults and one student attended the meeting, but Bates said Friday several students who were unable to attend picked up information about the trip.

Originally, the students were set to travel through Germany and the Alps but Bates said a lack of interest among students

to travel to those places called for the destination change.

“The destination changed because there was not student interest in traveling to Germany,” she said. “Spain was chosen because it seemed to be of more interest to the students. As to how this affects student interest in the tour, I do know that when it was mentioned that we had changed destinations to Spain there was a greater element of student excitement to travel. The change was solely based on student interest.”

The tour is not just open to Jessieville High School students, Bates said. She has also reached out to Fountain Lake to see if any students would be interested in joining the trip. A Spanish teacher from Fountain Lake attended the meeting, and Bates said she and her co-leader discussed reaching out to Lakeside and Hot Springs high schools about the trip, as well.

Students will be traveling with Education First Tours, a company that has been in the business of student travel for 50 years, Bates said, and has offices in several countries including Spain.

“Their programs offer a safe and affordable means of overseas travel,” she said. “I have traveled with this company to Italy, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. EF organizes the trip.”

A few details Bates shared in her presentation Thursday said that the chaperone to student ratio has every six students with a chaperone from the school. The tour company also offers peace of mind by never sending a group to a location they feel is unsafe and offers backup options for travel, if needed. There will also be a 24-hour tour director and 24-hour emergency line.

The tour will visit Madrid, Granada, Seville and Costa del Sol. The total cost per person for the trip is $3,715, with payment options available.

Potential destinations, Bates said, are chosen based off itineraries the company has available. A survey among students last year showed Germany and the Alps as the preferred destination, but Bates said when it came time for recruiting students to travel, there was more interest in the survey’s second choice — Spain.

The Jessieville School District is no stranger to overseas travel, having made trips in 2016 to Italy and 2017 to Ireland and the United Kingdom. Another teacher, Bates said, previously led a tour to Belize, as well.

“I hope to see this program grow in the future because I love traveling and it is a great experience for students,” she said. “It provides them with the opportunity to see landmarks and experience cultures that they had only previously read about in textbooks.”

Email Bates at alex.bates@jsdlions.net or Elizabeth Mehlin at elizabeth.mehlin@jsdlions.net for more information.