An outlook on what it’s like

Many students and staff here at Minnehaha believe that we are blessed to have a CFE week full of opportunities to do service work for others and to travel while doing so. There were many wonderful trips this year, including Thailand, Europe, Guatemala, and many more. These trips take a lot of planning so students can learn, have fun, and do service projects.

“We normally come up with ideas and plan the trips a year in advance,” said Jessa Anderson, director of cultural immersion.

Many MA staff collaborate to come up with different trips to go on, they have many partnerships that help them with the exact plans for each trip. The process takes a whole year which includes, booking the flights, and planning what purpose each trip will have.

Most trips can become expensive, but don’t let that hold you back from going before you graduate.

“Students can apply for scholarships, and we’ve started receiving a little bit more scholarship funding money in funding from outside places, which has been really helpful to add support to students being able to go on core formation experiences,” said Anderson.

Many students have raised money and gotten scholarships to be able to go on international trips.

“100% Yes, go on an international trip before you graduate,” said chaperone of the Thailand trip and sacred studies teacher Joel Johnson. “And don’t let the financial part of it scare you. We had a student on our trip that fundraised 100% of the cost. You can figure it out, you can get some scholarship money, you might not. But if the cost is a burden, we trip leaders will help you figure that out.”

If you are genuinely interested, the staff at MA will support you and your decision and help you to go as much as they possibly can. Going on these trips, international or not, allows you to learn so much and to make new friends you might have never thought you’d be friends with.

“I was proud of the students that went because it was cool to see how different groups of people came closer together,” said Johnson.

These kinds of international trips allow you to learn about other cultures, bond with other students, get a deeper understanding of other religions, and so much more.