Holy Cross takes first student trip to Europe
Amy Gregson – Times Reporter
For the first time in the school’s history, Holy Cross Collegiate took a group of students to Europe.
A group of 50; including 38 students from grades 10 to 12, 5 parents and 7 teachers, all went on the journey, which took them to Paris, Milan, Florence, Rome and Pisa.
“It was awesome, amazing and so good,” said Lavern Evans, principal and head coordinator.
Evans said they decided to go on a trip because there was a demand from students, and they felt they should offer it because a lot of other schools do.
“The kids got so much out of it and realized there is more to life than Strathmore and Alberta,” said Evans. In most of the cities the group traveled to they would go on a tour led by a local guide. Than students usually had free time to shop and see the sights.
The group saw the Palace of Versailles, Eiffel Tower, Vatican and Leaning Tower of Pisa, just to name a few.
Evans said the trip fits well into the curriculum as well. He said visiting the Palace of Versailles is relevant to social studies and globalization, while visiting Rome, or the Vatican or other churches fits into religion; even going to the Leaning Tower of Pisa can relate to math and physics.
“There’s so much they can learn and become better educated by traveling,” said Evans. “It was just a good highlight of Europe.”
He said the students were so well behaved, respectful and polite that it made the trip that much better.
“It’s just a matter of making sure you’re doing head counts, making sure you have the proper amount of kids and then when you go out you’re always in groups of three for safety reasons,” said Evans.
The trip was such a success HCC plans to go again in 2012 and continue going every two years.