Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Field Trip topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Abingdon students visit Colonial Williamsburg on fully funded trip
Summary
Eighty-eight Abingdon Elementary students spent a day at Colonial Williamsburg after grants and local donations covered transportation and fees so no child paid to participate.
Eighty-eight fourth-graders from Abingdon Elementary School visited Colonial Williamsburg on a chartered trip paid entirely with grant and local foundation funds, Gloucester County Museum of History director Robert Kelly told the Gloucester County School Board. The excursion, which lasted about six hours at the site, was arranged by the museum in partnership with school staff and community volunteers and included guided programs led by museum specialists.
The trip’s organizers said the cost was about $6,000 in round numbers, roughly half of which covered two charter buses. Organizers reported a $2,250 field-trip grant from the American Battlefield Trust and a $3,500 grant from the Gloucester Community Foundation; remaining costs were covered by other local fundraising so “the trip came completely free to these children,” Robert Kelly said.
Principal Anna Harwood introduced the grade-level teachers and community partners who helped prepare students and described pre-visit lessons. Students who attended later read brief excerpts to the board about highlights — a blacksmith, the silversmith, and the Governor’s Palace — and asked museum-style questions during the public portion of the meeting. Museum staff said the visit was intended to immerse students in living-history experiences that are difficult to replicate in the classroom.
School and museum staff told the board they had performed a pre-visit with students, split the class into smaller groups for activities at Williamsburg, and used museum personnel and volunteers as tour guides to keep costs down. Organizers negotiated charter-bus service with Newton’s, who gave a reduced rate, and emphasized that the trip aimed to remove financial barriers for families. When asked, staff confirmed about 88 students went and that two charter buses were required.
The museum and school leaders told the board they plan similar trips for other elementary grades later in the school year and encouraged continued partnership to expand hands-on history programs.
