by Elaine Marranzano
During spring break in April, three separate groups of students from Sleepy Hollow and Irvington schools participated in school-sponsored trips to Spain, Egypt and London. An enlightened and inspired group of teenagers (and one fourth grader) who returned.
Student strike a pose in Egypt.
“Spain is nothing like America. Every single building, every block, has meaning because of the history and architecture,” said Weston Murphy, a junior at Sleepy Hollow High School who traveled to Spain, along with 10 other boys and 13 girls.
“I loved it,” gushed Sleepy Hollow junior Lauren Zallo. “I want to move to Madrid or at least do a semester abroad.”
The nine-day trip to Madrid and Barcelona was organized by the Sleepy Hollow Foreign Language Honor Society under the direction of Jaime Begazo, chairperson of the school’s Foreign Language Department.
Last year the Foreign Language group traveled to France and is planning a trip to Italy next year. School-sponsored trips are typically organized by faculty, cost between $2,000 and $3,000 per student, and are paid for by parents, fundraisers and some foundation contributions.
Since 1996, the African-American Heritage Club at Sleepy Hollow Middle/High School has been organizing trips to Africa “to dispel myths and encourage appreciation for Africa’s contributions to the world,” according to Dr. Cheryl Burton, a social worker at the school and co-advisor of the African-American Heritage Club.
In years past, the group went to West Ghana and South Africa. This year, they traveled to Egypt.
“Egypt was surreal,” said Kareen Ishmal, a senior at Sleepy Hollow. “It is one thing to look at pictures in a text book, but when you see the pyramids up close, that’s another thing.”
“I noticed that women are treated differently in Egypt than in the U.S.,” said 15-year-old Violet Overn. “Of course, we had to wear head scarves, but it was more than that. It was little things like the policemen seemed to be more protective of women than they were of the men crossing the street.”
Over 11 days, the group of 12 students and 19 adults (teachers and relatives) visited the Museum of Cairo, the ancient Pyramids of Giza and the tombs of King Tut, Queen Hatshepsut and Akhnaton. They rode through the streets of Aswan late at night in a horse and carriage, cruised for four days and three nights down the Nile River and visited an elementary school where they were taught the Arabic alphabet.
“The kids said it was the trip of a lifetime,” said Dr. Burton. “They were able to see live what they had been studying about.”
Fourth-grader Gavin Checchi was the youngest student who went to Egypt.
“He asked the most questions,” said Dr. Burton.
Larry Corio, music director at Irvington High School, escorted 117 members of the concert/marching band and flag team, along with 13 chaperones, to London for three performances in what he called “the single finest event we have ever attended in my 33 years of teaching.”
The students in the Wind Ensemble played at St. John’s-Smith Square in London, while the Concert/Marching Band and Flag Team performed at St. Matthias Church in Richmond, England. A third performance featured all three groups at the Sippford School in Oxfordshire.
Like many of the students on these school trips, this was Paparo’s first visit to Europe.
“I really wanted to go to London because of reading the Harry Potter books and it is one of the great cities of the world,” said Christina Paparo, a sophomore at Irvington High School. “It was such a privilege to be able to do this.”
Comments