Five-thousand dollars. That was Key-Club’s quote for a bus to Oregon for a weekend conference. 

While buses have always been expensive, the recent shifts in district field trip policy and risk management enforcement mean that clubs are now being required to take expensive district transportation to both local and overnight events. These new adjustments aren’t all negative though; in fact, the new system greatly streamlines the field trip process. 

“The regulation for field trips was adopted in 1986. It was duplicative, complicated, and out of date,” the Issaquah School District’s Athletics and Activities director Jordan Frost said. 

Club and sports advisors are in charge of filling out field trip applications, and historically, the work required was significant. 

First, pre-approval had to be submitted. Pre-approval included a rough outline of the trip being requested but did not require details like timing, chaperones, or an exact number of student participants. After this initial paperwork was given a thumbs-up, the advisor had to submit yet another form for final approval. 

“Before, the process for submitting a field trip application was very long. It took a lot more work than was actually reasonable to turn in a field trip form,” Liberty athletic coordinator Matt Stuart said.

Previously, final approval did not need to be submitted until 45 days prior to the field trip, and gaining final approval was not always simple. Final approval had to include all final details for the field trip, and the forms were often sent back to be edited several times before gaining approval.  

“Now they’ve streamlined the process, and we have to submit all the details right away,” Key Club advisor Maricel Paulino said. 

Advisors no longer have to go through multiple rounds of approval and extra paperwork; they now only have to submit one round of approval with all details included the first time around. 

“It prevents the anxiety of knowing that even though you have pre-approval, you still need to submit final approval. Now, you know in advance that you have approval and all you have to do 45 days in advance is get signatures,” Paulino said. 

Many administrative positions have a similar perspective as Paulino. 

“I know that on the athletics side the process changed for the better. It makes it a lot easier to submit field trip forms,” Stuart said. 

Amanda Johnson, Liberty’s activity coordinator, agrees with this notion. 

“I think it makes my role a lot easier because the instructions and expectations are very clear,” Johnson said.

It is clear that the policy modifications had positive intentions, and on the administrative side, the effects have been positive as well. 

At the student level, however, these changes haven’t been received as positively. In addition to streamlining the process of field trip applications, the district has also buckled down on enforcement of these policies and worked to eliminate liabilities on the schools’ and teachers’ behalf. In theory, decreased liability means increased safety for students and teachers, but in reality, it also means a whole lot more money.

“It’s good, because as an advisor, it makes it easier for me to know where the kids are safety wise, and I’m also protecting myself from liability. The only drawback is having to come up with funds,” Paulino said.

These increased costs mostly come from the requirement to take district transportation even to local events. Previously, this regulation was not enforced, and students were generally allowed to drive themselves and their friends to weekend conferences and day events. Now, the district risk management department is strongly encouraging, and in some cases requiring, district transportation. Often this means buses, and buses mean money. A lot of money, and money that clubs don’t have. 

“It’s always been a struggle trying to get clubs to go do things, and when things cost more, there are more limits. There are liabilities whenever you travel, but if you’re going to be part of a greater community, you’ve got to get involved,” Model United Nations advisor Peter Kurtz said. 

There are limited funds available to clubs and they are largely left to fundraise for themselves. If those fundraising efforts are not enough, students are then forced to pay out-of-pocket for the costs of transportation, adding sometimes hundreds of dollars to the cost of events. For many students, those few hundred dollars make or break whether they can attend. 

“The district really has students’ best interest in mind. They just want to keep everybody safe, but realistically, it’s not playing out very well,” said Shelby Mallard, senior and head delegate of Liberty’s Model United Nations chapter. “Many fun things have become essentially impossible, even though they can be really good opportunities for students to get real life experience.”