With less than six months until Winterim 2025, the School has finalized trip selections, assigned trip leaders, and developed essential questions to guide each experience.

The Winterim Committee assigned students to trips in August after reviewing family responses collected earlier this year. Factors such as student preferences, age, swimming ability, comfort with heights, and bike-riding skills were all considered.

To streamline the process, the committee sent out forms in March instead of the typical September timeframe, allowing for more thorough planning and securing better travel arrangements.

“Because we had all that extra time, we’ve been able to lock in lower pricing, guaranteed tickets, and hotel rooms,” Upper School Joshua Neudel said, also adding that the committee’s early efforts even allowed families to complete some paperwork at back-to-school night.

Italy, one of the most popular Winterim destinations, proved particularly challenging to organize due to the high level of interest. “Italy was by far the most popular [choice],” Neudel said. “That was the one that was the most challenging to plan.”

Middle and Upper School Director of Academic Services Karen Bernanke will be leading this popular trip.

“I think the biggest challenge is travel. Because we’re there around Easter, many hotels are not available in Capri – so that means we’re also taking a bus to Sorrento,” Bernanke said. “There’s a lot of travel on the first day.”

Looking ahead, Neudel said that meetings for individual Winterim groups will take place after December break, during Thursday’s activities period. During these meetings, students will select room preferences and learn more about the trip itineraries.

“It’s going to be a very packed ,” Bernanke said. “But the itinerary looks very exciting: we are blending sea, air, and biking all together.”

In addition to the early planning, Winterim 2025 introduces new elements, including community service and subject-specific components. Neudel emphasized that spending time with locals aligns with the School’s mission of fostering global-mindedness.

Each trip also revolves around essential questions. For example, the Panama trip focuses on STEAM topics, such as engineering, ecology, and biodiversity.

Meanwhile, the Austria and Germany trip will delve into the history of the Habsburg dynasty, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and the region’s musical and artistic heritage.