FILE: IFCB
Cf: EDAE
FIELD TRIPS AND EXCURSIONS
The Ouachita Parish School Board recognizes that educational field trips and excursions for instructional purposes help provide desirable learning experiences. The Superintendent has the responsibility for the development of administrative criteria governing field trips and excursions. Only those field trips, however, that grow out of the instructional program or are otherwise related to the program are to be permitted on school time. Other trips such as those involving band and athletic activities should be confined to non-school time, except where the school is engaged in competition or a contest that requires use of school time.
Teachers planning on conducting out-of-parish field trips or learning experiences shall submit, through the principal, an application in writing to the Superintendent or his/her designee for approval. Before any trip or excursion is taken, written parental permission shall be secured for every student planning to take the trip. Students who have not submitted signed parental permission forms shall not be allowed to make the trip.
Before approval of any field trip is given, it shall be determined whether the trip is covered by the School Board's liability insurance. No travel shall be authorized where coverage cannot be secured prior to the trip commencing. Except in extreme cases approved by the principal of the school, private vehicles shall not be used for transporting children on field trips. Only buses, owned by or contracted to the school district, and driven by certified drivers shall be permitted, except as noted above.
The School Board does not endorse the use of private vehicles to transport students to and/or from interscholastic activities. However, it recognizes the need for additional transportation at certain times; and the use of private vehicles may be utilized for the transportation of students to interscholastic activities provided that (1) students being thus transported provide the school with liability release forms signed by the students' parents/guardians; (2) all such vehicles are driven by properly licensed adults; and (3) the name of the driver, a copy of the driver's license, and proof of insurance coverage are provided the principal prior to the use of the private vehicle.
STUDENT EXCURSIONS
Whenever any student trip or excursion utilizes the services of a travel agent or booking agent to provide or arrange for transportation or lodging, the School Board shall require the travel agent or booking agent to provide proof of adequate insurance and present to the School Board a surety bond sufficient to insure recovery of all monetary advances as a result of nonperformance.
The amount of the bond shall be at least equal to any payments made to the travel agent agency or booking agent prior to the date of travel. In addition, any bond issued shall be from a surety company licensed to do business in Louisiana and approved by the School Board. A certified check from the travel agency covering the full amount of advanced payment may be accepted by the School Board, but only when a bond is not available.
Additional regulations governing field trips or excursions for students that involve travel or lodging may be maintained by the Superintendent and staff.
The principal of a junior high, middle school, or high school shall be prohibited from approving any field trip or extracurricular activity promoted by any individual, organization, or entity which plans, promotes, or organizes travel arrangements, unless the trip or activity is in accordance with all School Board and staff established criteria, and is covered by proper insurance and an acceptable surety bond.
GUIDELINES
Any field trips or activities of students during or out-side of school hours sponsored by the school and involving student, and/or teaching- personnel, are considered school sponsored trips.
A field trip is defined as any departure from the school whereby students, teachers, aides, principals and/or any other school personnel are involved.
The principal must have on file prior to the date of departure, a detailed travel plan. This should include the following information:
Student’s name
Student’s home address
Student’s home phone number
A list of all participating students’ chaperones
A travel itinerary including dates and time of departure location of stops and meals, and the total cost of the trip for each participant.
If the field trip is planned under the auspices of an outside agency, the principal should check carefully the credibility of the organization, its financial standing and performance record.
The principal or teacher in charge should make every effort to include everyone in the class or student organization on the trip, however, a field trip sponsored by an individual school is limited to the students who are currently registered in that class and/or grade unless it is a joint activity in which students from other schools will participate.
No student may attend a field trip unless a parental permission slip is signed by the parent and on file in the principal's office prior to the trip. No student will be made to attend a field trip. If there are students within a class and/or group who will not be taking the field trip, the principal and teacher should make provisions for educational instruction for those students for that day. Educational instruction must be provided.
Elementary students should be provided with secure name tags listing student's names and emergency telephone numbers.
Careful supervision of students, including accounting for students immediately following each activity should be closely monitored and adhered to.
No field trips shall be taken prior to the completion of the first month of school. No field trips will be taken the last week of school.
All field trips should be planned in conjunction with a unit of study as a means of concluding the unit with a field trip.
Ref: La. Rev. Stat. Ann. §§17:81, 17:176.1
Ouachita Parish School Board