By Vivika Cruz
February 8, 2024
Hancock Students Snow Tubing In Quebec, Canada in 2023 Photo: Vivika Cruz
| Hancock high school offers its students to travel internationally, allowing them to gain independence and create memories with their peers. | On February 16, a group of students led by Ms. Gonzalez and Ms. Joyce leave to Greece for a week. |
Marco Ochoa, a senior at Hancock, will be traveling internationally for the first time to Greece thanks to the international club.
“I won’t be close to my family and I don’t have prior experience to prepare myself for the trip,” Marco stated.
Hancock has an international club that hosts yearly international trips. These trips are open to all students if interested. Chloe Tracy, a senior attending Hancock, participated in last year's international trip to Quebec, Canada. However, prior to the trip, she had never traveled out of the country.
“I never traveled out of the country before and I've always wanted to travel. My brother tells me stories about places he's been to because of the Marines. He traveled to like 20 different countries. So I'm always kind of jealous of him. I just wanted the opportunity to travel,” Chloe said.
Announcements about the international trips are announced through flyers. They’re put up around the school to inform students that there will be an informational meeting where students are then able to sign up. The teachers in charge of the current trip will then look into which students are best fit to travel internationally. The decision is made based on grades and teacher recommendations.
The international club travels to different countries every year, allowing students to expand their horizons in seeing the world.
In a Morehead University article, Lakole Fields, a senior from Grayson high school, is an education major who participated in Education Abroad during her spring break last year. She talks about her experience traveling internationally through her high school. Fields stated, “I made so many memories on this trip that I will never forget. I formed better relationships with my classmates and formed new relationships with the students in Brazil. When I think about how hesitant I was about going initially, I am so glad I did not talk myself out of going. I honestly cannot say enough good things about this program and the mentors who went on the trip with us.” The Education Program has been able to award $100,000 in scholarships through the Gilman Scholarship.
When Chloe found out that she was chosen for the Quebec trip, her family was thrilled for her. She stated, “I was so excited. I ran to my parents and to my brother and I was just super, super happy because I've never been out of the country. So it was definitely going to be a great experience for me.”
Chloe had many positive outcomes as a result of going to Quebec. She distinctly recalled a memory when she went tubing with her peers. “Most of the time I got on the tube, I fell pretty much almost every single time. And it was, it was just so funny because I just couldn't get on it. Or when we all climbed up on that huge mountain of snow and took a picture. It was huge. I don't think I've ever seen a mountain of snow so tall,” she stated.
Being able to travel internationally with Hancock allowed Chloe to gain a new perspective. “It definitely helped me be more independent and aware of where I'm at, especially when I'm traveling.” She explained. Hancock’s international trips allow for students to expand their horizons, create new memories, and become more independent.
Although Marco has his worries about traveling to Greece, he stated, “I’m mostly excited to see their culture and experience a new environment. I’m a guy who likes to try new things, and now I get to do this outside of the country.” There are a total of 19 students going on the trip.
In summer of 2024, 19 students will be discovering STEM in Switzerland and Germany. The coordinators of the trip are Ms. Grant-Snow and Ms. Bentel.
In spring of 2025, there will be a trip to Korea led by Mr. and Ms. Phillips.
This was written in Hancock’s Journalism class for the school newspaper, The Signature