Liz Aplin Trip: Florence, Italy

Following the unexpected loss of art instructor Liz Aplin, who died in 2000 after teaching at Baylor for ten years, a committee of friends and benefactors created an art trip in her memory.

Since the first trip in 2001 to the Florence Academy in Italy, several groups of Baylor students have traveled abroad to study art and immerse themselves in other cultures as authentically as possible. In addition to painting each day under the instruction of a professional artist, the students live in a city or village, prepare many of their own meals with food purchased in local markets, navigate cobbled European streets on foot, and ride crowded public transportation systems – often for the first time.

David M. Abshire Civic Leadership Trip

The David M. Abshire Civic Leadership trip is an intensive week-long experiential course of study in Washington D.C. with an emphasis on national leadership, ethics, entrepreneurship and service.

Up to 12 rising seniors are selected each year to travel to the nation's capital in June where they meet a variety of leaders and participate in a myriad of activities while also enjoying tours of government buildings and national landmarks. The students also have the opportunity to participate in leadership and entrepreneurship seminars with government officials and Baylor alumni in the area. The program was created in partnership with the Center for the Study of the Presidency and the late Dr. Abshire ’44, who served as president and CEO of that organization.

Joe Key Award, Acadia National Park, Maine

The Joe "Sarge" Key Award is a trip honoring rising seniors with admirable character whose selfless efforts might otherwise go unrecognized by the school or by their peers.

Each year, 12 students are nominated by faculty for an all-expense-paid trip to Acadia National Park in July for seven days of sea-kayaking, hiking, and camping.

The trip is named in honor of the late Joe Key, who taught and coached at Baylor for many years.

Walkabout: Sikkim, India

Baylor students who participate in the annual spring break trip to India have the rare opportunity to experience traditional Tibetan religion and culture before it completely disappears. Students are immersed in the culture – studying Tibetan religion, hiking trails bordering Nepal and the Himalayan mountains, and participating in a service project building sanitary facilities in a village of Sikkim.

Students who express an interest in the trip are required to go through a screening process. "We're looking for students who are genuinely interested in experiencing another culture," says trip leader Tim Williams. "It is a physically and emotionally demanding month. This isn't about going to ride the elephants."

Community Service in Jamaica

Student leaders involved in Baylor’s Community Service program travel to Kingston, Jamaica during spring break where they work in an early childhood center and the squatter community of Ferry.

In addition to their service work at various sites the students have raised money for the Jamaica Education Fund through Candygrams, Valentine Sales, and a writing campaign.  The money raised will be used to purchase school supplies that are loaded into duffle bags and then dispersed at an elementary school near the under-resourced squatter settlement of Ferry.

FIND OUT MORE

To find out more about Baylor School's community service program, click here.

Sixth Grade Trip

At the beginning of their sixth grade year, students enjoy a two-day, one-night outdoor trip with classmates and teachers. Teachers plan and lead the trip, which is designed to allow students to meet their new classmates, learn about the Baylor experience, and just have fun so they return to campus with new friends and are ready to take on the rest of their school year.

Seventh Grade Trip 

On the annual seventh grade class trip, seventh graders have the opportunity to visit the Atlanta area, including exploring attractions such as the Chattahoochee Nature Center and Tellus Science Museum while enjoying time with each other and their teachers.  

Eighth Grade Class Trip, Washington, D.C.

Since 1976, the eighth grade class has ventured to Washington, D.C. While enjoying the city as a whole, highlights of the itinerary include visits to the Holocaust Memorial Museum, the Smithsonian's Air and Space, American History, Natural History, and National Gallery of Art museums, the World War II, Vietnam and Korean War memorials.

Students gain an appreciation for the U.S. government and are able to see firsthand what they have been taught in the civics and ethics classes. For example, a visit to the Holocaust Museum reinforces the ethical questions about prejudice, racism, and stereotyping that students discussed in class. The museum further enhances their understanding of the Holocaust and related issues, including contemporary examples of genocide.

Because numerous teachers accompany the students, an additional benefit is that the students have a chance to interact with their teachers outside of the classroom.

Freshman Trip

With the addition of boarding students and the transition into upper school, the freshman year is a transitional time in developing relationships with classmates, faculty, and older students.

At the beginning of the school year, the entire freshman class travels to Camp Alpine in Mentone, Ala., and upperclassmen guide the freshman class through two days and nights of outdoor adventures, square dancing, and most importantly – the profound opportunity to relax together.

With the addition of boarding students and the transition into upper school, the freshman year is a transitional time in developing relationships with classmates, faculty, and older students.

The trip is organized by Baylor's Walkabout team.

Senior Trip

The senior trip originated in the early 1970s as a way to pull senior classes together, put them in an unfamiliar environment, and promote an understanding of what it means to be part of a team and all that comes from that – leadership, compassion for others, and an appreciation and respect for the outdoors. It was unique at that time for a high school to have an outdoor program, and it was radical to have a weeklong senior trip that took place instead of exams. That part still is radical.

Since then, the Senior Trip to Camp Chattooga in Mountain Rest, S.C., has been the cornerstone of the Walkabout program. Seniors spend the last six days of their Baylor careers on a wilderness adventure that includes an overnight camping trip, canoing and kayaking Class IV rapids, trail service work with the National Forest Service, and evening entertainment.

"For some, it's an amazing experience to realize they went to school with some classmates for six years and never knew them," says retired faculty member Bill Cushman '59. "Others are intrigued by the intellectual and spiritual power of the outdoors. There is a lot of talking and, as teachers, we try to interpret the trip for them. It's an opportunity for total human experiences to come together."