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Ithaca schools staff and students describe Morocco trip, seek board approval to run program again
Summary
Students and advisers summarized a February school trip to Morocco, described homestays with Victor Hugo School in Beni Mellal, and asked the board for permission to run the trip in March/April 2026; presenters outlined fundraising, scholarships and plans to host Moroccan students in Ithaca.
Presenters from Ithaca High School reviewed a February student trip to Morocco and asked the board to authorize a similar trip during spring break 2026.
Trip advisers said students visited Marrakesh, Beni Mellal (where the Victor Hugo School is located), Casablanca and Rabat. Students described homestays in Beni Mellal as the “most impactful part of the trip,” citing close family stays, cultural exchange, and classroom visits. A student described visiting the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca and seeing mausoleums and governmental buildings in Rabat.
Advisers said the program has built an ongoing relationship with the Victor Hugo School and that some Moroccan students and teachers remain in contact with Ithaca students after previous visits. Presenters said they had taken a signed district letter inviting the Victor Hugo School to visit Ithaca as a first step toward arranging visas and hoped to host visitors in October, pending visa processing and safety reviews.
Program leaders described fundraising and scholarship work: nearly $20,000 was raised overall to support students; fundraising alone contributed almost $13,000; about 32% of trip participants received some financial aid (including four full scholarships and two scholarships covering 75% of costs), and the trip advisers said they distributed about $15,000 in scholarship awards. Presenters said the estimated cost per student for next year’s trip would be about $2,500, with additional support from grants and local partners.
Presenters named local partners and curricular supports that helped expand access: GIAC (which sponsors at least two scholarships), a collaboration with Cornell’s Arabic language programs, and curricular additions such as a memoir by a Moroccan author and language work facilitated by community partners. The group said they also work with a Morocco‑based professional trip coordinator (Rasheed/Rashid) with 25 years’ experience.
Board members and staff asked procedural questions about the application the board receives before a vote and about safety and visa logistics; staff said the application packet would be added to a future agenda once available. The presenters asked that the board consider placing the trip proposal on the May agenda for action; a board staffer said the item will be scheduled and that the board would not vote on adoption that night because the required application was not included in the packet.
No vote to authorize the trip was taken at the April 29 meeting. Advisers said they will continue scholarship fundraising and grant applications, and they emphasized the program’s goals of building language skills, combating stereotypes and creating intercultural student ties.
