Field trips were often a highlight of the school year for most of us when we were in school. We remember the excitement of being with our friends in a new environment, visiting a museum, maybe a trip to a mission or even a day at the park. Regardless, it was a school day spent out of the classroom and you knew you were going to have a good time from the moment you stepped on the bus.
For many Catholic schools, having the luxury of chartering a bus for a class or two to go on a field trip does not always come that easily.
The average cost can sometimes exceed $1,000 per bus. Thanks to the Catholic Education Foundation’s Big Yellow Bus program, which is funded by the Steinmetz Foundation, transportation of students has been made possible for over 100,000 children since 2005.
Many Catholic schools would not be able to send their students on educational field trips otherwise. Pictured on this page are students from St. Patrick School on a trip to the Natural History Museum as well as St. Anthony of Padua students touring the Rancho Dominguez Adobe Museum.
“The Big Yellow Bus provides many field trips for our students. Otherwise, it would be really difficult for us to take them on a field trip,” said St. Anthony of Padua Principal Angela Grey.