The junior class of 2020 and some seniors will be taking their first trip to Dallas Texas to visit universities, learn about living opportunities outside of El Paso. The junior trip was put together by administrators and Mr. Arthur Beck, college readiness coordinator. According to Mr. Beck, the purpose of this trip was to give students the exposure of leaving El Paso and to show the many opportunities and choices there are in Texas.
“I needed to show our Bowie students exposure to colleges other than EPCC and UTEP, there are other places in Texas that are attainable other than the ones in El Paso,” Mr. Beck said.
Mr. Beck said the choice to take the trip to Dallas other than any other place was because students knew very little about the schools in Dallas.
“A lot of students choose to go to colleges like San Antonio because they have relatives over there but not really in Dallas, I wanted to show the students the Dallas area and the universities in Dallas,” Mr. Beck said.
The students started their trip on Monday, Nov. 12, they hope to be back Friday, Nov. 15 in time to work again. According to Mr. Beck, they picked this week to go on the trip because it’s the week before Thanksgiving and also because it’s before the EOC testing starts.
“I know a lot of people and a lot of teachers, most importantly, care about EOC exams and this semester the exams are starting early, it’s a good idea to go in the fall before juniors and seniors start worrying about finishing up the school year,” Mr. Beck said.
Mr. Beck said the students he picked to go on the trip were the top juniors and seniors. All juniors all have above a 3.0 GPA and the seniors were picked by the administration for helping with the Bowie Business Academy.
“there were very few seniors chosen to go on the trip because at this time it is probably too late for seniors to make that choice, applications for colleges and Financial Aid are either starting to be due or should have already been done.” Mr. Beck said.
Priscilla Maraz, 11th grade, was one of the handfuls of students picked to go on the Dallas trip. Maraz said this trip to Dallas is more than just a trip to her. This trip is not only providing her and her friends with knowledge of the colleges in Dallas but is also giving them a break from school.
“knowing the universities will be beneficial to us but also just having time from school will help us relax and get ready to go back to work,” Maraz said.
Not only will the students be able to visit 6 universities but they will also be going to visit a funeral school for students that may want to be funeral embalmers. they also get the chance to try out different restaurants and participate in any other actives they might like.
“I plan on having fun with my friends and just relaxing from school because I’ve been really stressed lately,” Maraz said.
Mr. Beck said this was a way to congratulate the students for their hard work, all students are A and B students and have taken the right classes to improve their academics.
“I think this is one of those things that makes you feel proud because your work isn’t often recognized by others so being invited feels pretty cool,” Maraz said.