Students and teachers are gearing up for next week’s Winterim, offered every two years as a signature program.
“We try to have a few programs that were in the last Winterim cycle–that were either really popular and we think they want to can run them again, or good travel places , including for folks that are newer to traveling or have different easier visa requirements,” Upper School Head Joshua Neudel said.
In preparation for Winterim, Neudel also used weekly community blocks as Winterim group meetings.
“We were able to utilize the community blocks this year which I think was really good because it allowed us to do some of the more formal document stuff and then take that off of the Winterim group meetings… so assembly can be a little bit more focused on itineraries and programming,” Neudel said.
US Director of Academic Services Karen Bernanke is leading this year’s trip to Italy. She disused the itinerary for the trip.
“We’re flying into Rome and then we fly from Rome to Naples which brings us down south and then we’re going to spend most of our time in the Sorrento Capri area,” Bernanke said. “We’re going to be doing some water boat tours of Capri.”
Claire Fleming ’25 spoke about what her excitement for the Italy trip.
“I’m really excited because we’re going to the island of Capri, which is on the Amalfi Coast,” Fleming said. “We’re [also] going to see the Blue Grotto, which is a really cool aquatic cave formation.”
All trip descriptions include a packing list which Bernanke believes helps students better prepare for the trip.
“Hummingbird Tours has been really organized, and we’ve been corresponding since last year about the trip and the details and the materials that we need to bring along,” Bernanke said. “We are corresponding just to know what to communicate with kids, what kids have, and what they don’t have.”
Upper School French teacher Nicole Rudolph is leading her first Winterim trip to Austria and Germany, which will explore culture and music.
“I’m taking a trip to Austria and Germany,” Rudolph said. “We’re going to Vienna and Salzburg and Munich and a few other places around.”
Several destinations also have a focus on architecture, including the Panama trip, which Issac Morris ’26 is attending.
“I’m going to be doing a little bit of research about how the canal was designed and how it works, as well as definitely packing,” Morris said.
Students in the Germany/Austria group, primarily made up of upperclassmen, have prepared brief presentations to share with their peers. These presentations aim to educate and provide insights into the various destinations the students will visit during their travels.
This year, daylight savings may complicate Winterim travel. However, Neudel believes that the students won’t be affected by the time change.
“I don’t think it’s going to [affect Winterim travel] other than folks that are flying out on Sunday needing to make sure they change their clocks and get up at the right time,” Neudel said.
