R-2 board votes yes on senior’s Missouri trip, tables eighth grader’s Washington D.C. trip

By Roxie Murphy, Staff Writer
Posted 6/18/20

BELLE — Belle High School class of 2020 senior trippers are expected to leave out Saturday for a Missouri trip instead of the traditional trip to Florida. The trip is another casualty of the …

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R-2 board votes yes on senior’s Missouri trip, tables eighth grader’s Washington D.C. trip

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BELLE — Belle High School class of 2020 senior trippers are expected to leave out Saturday for a Missouri trip instead of the traditional trip to Florida. The trip is another casualty of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Senior class sponsor and head of the trip Sarah Mouser said Monday that the June 20-16 trip will start in Branson, then the Niangla River Oasis for a float trip, and end at the Lake of the Ozarks. Although Superintendent Dr. Lenice Basham had asked that the students not be taken to St. Louis, Kansas City or Branson during the board meeting, Mouser said that mentioning Branson was an accident and the kids had permission to go to that location.

“There are nine seniors total that still can go,” Mouser said on June 15. “One thought the trip would be canceled entirely and planned another trip and chose to do that. The other started college already and can’t take off for a week.”

Mouser said they are going to do their best to spend as much of the funds raised for the trip as possible, and even though the students were disappointed to not go to Florida, they are happy to have the Missouri trip.

“I am really excited we get to still do it,” Mouser said. “I was not looking forward to having the conversation if they didn’t let us do it and what to do with all the money,” Mouser said. “It is a big mess apparently if it isn’t used for what it was raised for. I am happy how it turned out so far.”

The Maries County R-2 Board of Education decided on May 28 to allow the seniors to participate in a senior trip while taking the Florida trip option off the table.

Mouser told the board that the seniors’ first choice was Florida, but their back-up plan is a Missouri trip. She outlined what the airlines, hotels and other entities would refund if they were not allowed to go to Florida.

“We have talked with everyone we associate within Florida and I gave you a list of everything they said based on when they are opening and the precautions they have been taking and if we have to cancel if we will be able to get our money back,” Mouser said. “Thus far everyone has said they will be able to give our money back.”

Mouser also provided ideas for some of the things the students would like to see if they are not allowed to go out of state and take a Missouri trip instead.

Board Director Tom Kinsey asked Mouser how students felt about a Missouri trip and she said all students that she has talked to said they are willing to do that as long as they get a trip.

Basham asked Mouser if students would each receive a refund for their plane tickets to Florida if they chose not to go.

“They would get a gift card for use in the future?” Basham asked.

Mouser said no, the school would receive a gift card with the entire amount. Board Vice President Dawn Hicks speculated that the 2020-21 senior trippers would purchase the gift card for their senior trip.

Kinsey said he could be okay with the Missouri trip instead of the Florida trip.

“But again it is these kids who have earned the funds,” Amy Kiso argued about giving the gift card to the 2020-21 senior class. “Using this money to take their trip — I don’t like it.”

Kiso asked what the district attorney said about keeping the funds and using them for something else. Basham said they have to have written information from the donors, and Mouser was able to collect permission from the donors, except the tips from the steak night.

“The other thing is you are talking about a lot of money, can you spend it all during the Missouri trip?” Kinsey asked Mouser.

Mouser said they had not come up with everything they would do on the Missouri trip yet, they had only looked at the motels at this point.

“They offer a lot of activities and such that we could purchase at that time,” she said. “We would use that extra money to pay for those activities for the kids to do.”

Director Kenda Sanders asked if all seniors who wanted to go would be able to go during the June dates for the Missouri trip or if the participation would be different. Mouser said they have only heard from one student that the June dates would be more difficult for them to attend due to starting college. Everyone else has said they are good with that week.

Basham said she only requested that the students not go to St. Louis, Kansas City or Branson because those were where the COVID-19 numbers were higher.

“I would still feel more comfortable with a Missouri trip than a Florida trip and for them to figure out how to spend that,” Hicks said. “I don’t think they should have nothing.”

“I agree,” Kinsey said. “You are only a senior once and the seniors have missed a bunch this year.”

Hicks said they need something for their last ‘hooray’ before they go off. Kinsey made a motion to allow the Missouri trip and Hicks seconded. Board President Joey Butler II asked if there was any more discussion.

“So are the 2020-21 seniors going to buy that gift card from the district?” Hicks asked about the airline card.

Basham said the district would purchase the airline gift card from the 2020 seniors and sell it to the 2021 seniors when it came time. The gift card balance is about $375 per student.

“So we would get our money back but we would have to put some upfront?” Hicks asked.

Butler asked if the next people care if the school buys the gift card from the seniors and gives them cash, are donors going to say ‘hey, I am glad I went to that fundraiser so they could go spend $2,000 at the mall?’

Kinsey said they are having an adventure and going to go do things.

“But can they spend that much money in Missouri?” Butler asked.

Hicks said she thought they could if they did it right. She added they could extend the dates a little bit longer so the kids don’t have to use the money in a week.

“If they wanted the money I don’t know what it would hurt…” Hicks said.

Sanders said she doesn’t care if the kids go to Florida or Missouri, they have to take precautions and have to be safe. Mouser and board members agreed.

“Ms. Mouser you are going to have to submit some kind of plan about how you plan to handle safety, and we probably need an itinerary of events and how you are going to ensure that you are social distancing,” Basham said. “How you are practicing the CDC guidelines.”

Sanders added she didn’t see anything about transportation for the Missouri trip and Mouser said they hadn’t put anything in, opting to wait until they knew one was approved.

Kinsey said 11 students were supposed to attend and depending on how they did it, that many could be spread out on a school bus.

“It’s not ideal, but they could be far enough away, it is something to think about,” Kinsey said.

Butler pointed out that they are on a senior trip and at some point in time they are going to be in close quarters, someone is going to come into contact with someone else.

“By voting for Missouri, that is saying no to Florida, right?” Butler asked.

The group agreed. The vote was 6-1 to all the seniors a Missouri trip.

“I’m opposed. I say let them go to Florida,” Butler said.

The board tabled a decision on the eighth graders’ Washington D.C. trip until more information about the public health guidelines could be provided.