STUDENT OUT-OF-STATE TRAVEL 3160
1. PURPOSE AND PHILOSOPHY
The Board of Education recognizes a student’s participation in a field trip, activity trip, conference, competition, workshop, exhibit, etc., may provide a meaningful educational experience. This policy provides guidelines governing out-of-state travel.
2. POLICY
Travel requests for field trips and activity trips must certify that students will be involved in verified and documented educational experiences based on objectives that cannot be met within the State of Utah. Out of State is allowed for students in grades 9 – 12 only. Preliminary approval from the Board must be received before making plans, introducing ideas to students, or making financial commitments. For the purposes of this policy, Mesquite, NV, Fredonia, AZ and Grand Junction, CO shall be considered in-state travel. (See Section 5 of this policy for additional required insurance coverage for travel to the three out of state cities listed above).
3. NON-APPROVED TRAVEL
3.1 Travel requests such as the following will not be approved:
3.1.1 Travel, trips, excursions, appearances, cruises, etc., which are sponsored by commercial interests for profit. “Such travel, while often popular with students and patrons, represents a serious misuse and manipulation of schools and students.”
3.1.2 “Reward trips” where performance is a secondary consideration and used only as an excuse to take the trip.
3.1.3 State, National, and International activities promoted by commercial enterprises for profit.
4. APPROVED ACTIVITIES AND LIMITS TO TRAVEL
4.1 Approved activities are those activities approved by school administration. They are limited to activities sponsored by the school such as school clubs, classes, teams, and other student groups with an approved faculty advisor.
4.1.1 School teams, classes, student groups, or organizations are limited to a maximum of one (1) out of state trip per school year.
4.1.2 Each high school is limited to a maximum of three out-of-state trips during any given fiscal year. Career and Technical student out-of-state travel as listed in section 6 does not count towards the maximum of three trips.
4.1.3 Out-of-State travel may only be within the fifty United States.
5. GUIDELINES FOR APPROVAL
5.1 The principal, Superintendent, and Board shall follow these guidelines when considering approval for student overnight travel plans:
5.2 General Guidelines
5.2.1 The educational objectives of the trip. Seventy percent (70%) of the entire trip or five (5) hours per day must be of an educational nature or consist of events directly related to the purpose of the trip.
5.2.2 The event is sponsored by a non-profit organization
5.2.3 The maximum cost per student is found in the Student Out of State Application Forms
5.2.4 Fund raising for any out-of-state travel must fall within the guidelines of the Sevier School District Fund-Raising Policy #3055.
5.2.5 The number of school days a student may miss is three (3) school days maximum.
5.2.6 Equivalent activities closer to the school and less expensive have been explored.
5.2.7 Safety issues have been addressed.
5.2.8 Adequate insurance coverage as provided through Moreton Insurance (associated with Risk Management) or other comparable coverage, has been obtained to cover travel and activities.
5.2.9 Participation in the travel activity is optional for students and not a requirement.
5.2.10 Approval of travel for a team or organization shall require a confidential vote of parents/guardians of involved students administered by the school principal. Parents/guardians shall be informed of the proposed travel itinerary, anticipated cost per student, and fundraising efforts.
5.2.10.1 There shall be one parent vote per student;
5.2.10.2 Non-voting parents shall count as a “no” vote;
5.2.10.3 Requires eighty-percent (80%) approval; and
5.2.10.4 To ensure that parents can vote on the issue without pressure from students or other persons, the vote may be conducted using a secret ballot, on-line survey, or other reasonable method determined by the school principal.
5.2.11 The parent/guardian of each student participant will submit a signed permission form to the teacher/advisor prior to all travel events and fundraising activities indicating permission to participate.
5.3 Activity Disclosure Statements
5.3.1 An activity disclosure statement, in accordance with Utah Code Ann., Section 53G-4-409, must be given to students and parents/legal guardians, before teams or groups in grades ninth through twelfth are selected.
5.4 Preliminary Student/Personnel Educational Travel Application
5.4.1 A Preliminary Student/Personnel Educational Travel Application must be completed, signed by the advisor/teacher, approved by the principal, and submitted to the Superintendent or his/her designee at least sixty (60) days prior to the proposed trip’s departure date. The Application shall include:
5.4.1.1 The name of the team or organization;
5.4.1.1.1 The proposed destination, mode(s) of travel, and number of students involved;
5.4.1.1.2 The number of school days missed;
5.4.1.1.3 The estimated total and per student cost of the trip and mode of payment, including fundraising;
5.4.1.1.4 The educational justification for the trip;
5.4.1.1.5 Date of parent meeting, review of safety considerations, and;
5.4.1.1.6 A list of advisors and adult supervisors (including the ratio of supervisors to students).
5.5 Supervision
5.5.1 Supervisors not currently employed by the District must pass a background check as per policy #2005.
5.5.2 Supervision of students participating in overnight travel must be provided at a ratio of one (1) responsible adult per every ten (10) students.
5.5.3 Supervisors shall be primarily advisors/teachers and parents/legal guardians.
5.5.4 Supervisors must be at least twenty-one (21) years of age.
5.5.5 Students must have supervisors of the same gender.
5.5.6 Supervisors are considered to be on duty during the entirety of the trip regardless of location, time of day or night, or number of other supervisors present or said to be supervising. Supervisors traveling with students are never considered off duty and must therefore abide by applicable District policies at all times, including but not limited to Sevier School District Policy #2003 – Alcohol and Drug-Free Workplace.
5.6 TRANSPORTATION
Commercial carriers must provide transportation for all out-of-state travel where feasible. Unless specifically authorized in writing by the State of Utah Risk Management, District school buses shall not be used for out-of-state travel. As advised by Utah Division of Risk Management, the Division of Fleet Operations (http://fleet.utah.gov/fleet/state-travel.html) must be used for ground and air travel where feasible. On occasions when small groups of 1 – 15 individuals are traveling rental vehicles may by contracted through the above website or personal vehicles may be used if all requirements are met. Insurance from the rental company is required. Upon arrival at a destination by air travel, appropriate ground transportation may be utilized in accordance with this policy. Arrangements for ground transportation must be made prior to travel departure.
6. CAREER & TECHNICAL STUDENT OUT-OF-STATE TRAVEL
All requirements and standards of travel as stated above must be followed for CTE Travel.
6.1 Career & Technical student organizations (CTSO) are an integral part of each CTE high school program. A goal of the CTSO is to prepare students to compete at the national level to celebrate their academic achievement. The trip must be considered an extension of the classroom and requires the same or higher professional behavior with the full attention of the advisor. To request travel for this purpose, students must meet all of the following requirements to seek Board approval:
6.1.1 Must be paid members and fully affiliated with both the state and national chapter of the CTSO organization.
6.1.2 Must be currently active in their CTSO shown by participation in the majority of the club activities and fund raising events.
6.1.3 High school students must be enrolled in a CTE class related to the CTSO during the current school year.
6.1.4 Must be recommended to the Board by the CTE advisor and school principal.
6.1.5 The student must not have any written documentation of unapproved behavior.
6.1.6 Must have written parental support and permission to travel with the CTSO organization.
6.1.7 Must have placed high enough and qualified at a state sponsored CTSO competition to receive an invitation (including state recognized placing move-ups) to compete as an individual student or group of students at the local, state, regional or national level, or they are a state officer as a result of an election process of the state CTSO.
6.1.8 At least one CTSO student member must qualify according to state placing criteria to compete, or as an elected state officer and plan to attend the national competition for the district to cover the cost of a CTSO advisor.
6.1.9 A completed Out-of-State Travel Request Form must be provided to the District Superintendent’s secretary as part of the request including names and qualifying event.
6.1.10 Information must be provided to the principal that shows this trip has educational merit; that the group will raise all monies associated with the trip following Board Policy; that a private carrier will be contracted that has the proper liability insurance, and that the students will not miss more than four (4) days of instruction for travel related to school sponsored CTSO.
6.2 Overnight, Long-Distance, and International Trips
6.2.1 The principal, superintendent, CTE director and the Board of Education must approve all CTE out-of -state travel requests. Request should be made to the Board at least six (6) weeks prior to the event.
6.2.2 Student participation in out-of-state travel shall not provide a financial burden on students or their families and is totally voluntary on the part of the parents. The CTSO organization sponsoring the trip must do so within the financial constraints of their budget and shall provide financial accountability for all expenditures. Students attending the national competition are responsible for all of their own travel expenses.
6.3 Withdrawal of Approval if Safety Concerns Arise
Whenever the principal, superintendent, or Board of Education determines that dangerous conditions may affect the health, safety, or welfare of those travelling, the principal, superintendent, or Board may withdraw approval for the trip. In making such decisions, the principal, superintendent, and Board will heed any travel advisories or restrictions issued by the FBI, the state department, or local officials. The Board, the District, and the school will not assume any liability for reimbursement of any costs or expenses incurred by any trip for which the principal, superintendent, or Board withdraws its approval.
6.4 Adequate Supervision of Students
CTSO advisors must provide adequate adult supervision at a ratio of 1 adult per 10 CTE students at all times.
6.5 Unsupervised Time
Advisors and chaperones must not schedule any unsupervised time for students, and must supervise students at all times during the trip.
6.6 Itinerary and Roster Contact Information
Advisor supervising CTSO trips must prepare a detailed itinerary, a roster of participants, and a list of addresses and telephone numbers where participants can be reached in case of an emergency. Advisors must submit this information to the principal at least one day before the trip. If any deviation from the itinerary occurs, advisors must notify the principal and CTE director as soon as possible.
6.7 Conduct Standards and Emergency Procedures
Advisors must review with students the student code of conduct and emergency procedures for out-of-state travel.
6.8 Notification of Emergency
In the event of an emergency while travelling out-of-state, the advisor leading the trip must notify the principal by telephone as soon as possible. This includes emergencies directly affecting students as well as general emergencies in the area where the competition is taking place.
6.9 Travel To and From Event with Advisor
Students are expected to travel to and from the CTSO event with the advisor leading the trip. Students are not permitted to leave the event on their own. Advisors must never send a student home alone even for disciplinary reasons. Parents/guardians desiring to take their children home before a CTSO trip ends, must submit a written request to the advisor, principal, and CTE Director about such arrangements in advance of the trip. The Board and the District assume no liability for students who are, for any reason, transported by parents in private cars.
6.10 Participation in CTSO Events
Staff members or students will not be required to participate or be pressured into participating in a CTSO trip.
Approved 12/10/14
Revised 06/16/16
Revised 09/13/17
Revised 10/09/24