05/22/2026
6th & 7th Grade Families,
This message is regarding next year’s Philadelphia/Hershey, PA student trip.
As previously communicated, due to increased transportation costs, we were originally informed that we would only be able to take 48 students on the trip, which is the capacity of one bus. In an effort to be fair to all interested students, we shared that a “lottery” system would need to be used if more than 48 students signed up for the trip.
Today (May 22nd), we had an incredible 74 students make their first deposit, indicating their interest in attending the trip. Mr. Linerode and I immediately reached out to Traveling Classroom — the organization we partner with to coordinate the trip and transportation — to share the tremendous student interest and discuss possible options.
Our priority has always been to do everything possible to allow every student who wants to attend the opportunity to go on this memorable experience. After further discussion and collaboration with Traveling Classroom, we are excited to share that we will be able to take two buses at the current cost of $525 per student if we reach a minimum of 80 students. Two buses would allow us to take up to 96 students total.
We truly appreciate Traveling Classroom’s partnership and willingness to work with us to make this opportunity possible for more of our students. We are also incredibly grateful for the enthusiasm and support shown by our students and families.
I will continue to keep families updated on our total numbers moving forward. If we do not reach 80 students, we would unfortunately still need to proceed with the lottery process using the 74 students who submitted their deposit today. However, if we reach between 80–96 students, all interested students will be able to attend the trip. If your child would like to attend the trip and a deposit has not been made – we encourage that the first deposit is made on Tuesday, May 26th.
Thank you again for your continued support and excitement surrounding this wonderful opportunity for our students.
Thank you,
Gregory Dente, Principal
East Canton Middle School
