Ben Shofet, Business Manager
Highlights: Can you tell me how you first got involved in the trip?
Dan Moroaica: The trip itself is put an organization called Worldstrides and I’ve worked with them for a couple of years. We tried to organize a trip to the east coast two years ago, but we didn’t have enough people. We have worked with them in the past for trips to D.C., New York, and colonial Williamsburg. This year they have an amazing opportunity for the high school students to not only visit D.C. but to visit D.C. on inauguration of the next president
Highlights: Having never attending an inauguration before, what are you hoping to expect?
Moroaica: Just being there is going to be a once in a lifetime opportunity. Even if it’s someone who we don’t agree with, Worldstrides is an organization that really promotes freedom of speech and freedom of the press, and of course we have to be civil and respectful. But anyway, if the inauguration is of someone we love, it will be amazing; if it’s someone we don’t like we can still speak our minds and that in itself will still be amazing. In addition to the inauguration, we will also be witnessing the inaugural address and the inaugural parade, so that alone is something most Americans never get to experience.
Highlights: Aside from the inaugural experience what else does the program offer?
Moroaica: Well the whole program itself is a total of five days four nights. So in addition to the inauguration, we will be going to the Arlington National Cemetery, we will be visiting our congressman Ted Lieu, we’ll be going to the Smithsonian, the Lincoln Memorial, the WWII Memorial, the Vietnam Memorial, the capitol building, the archives, it’s basically gonna be a whirlwind D.C. tour.
Highlights: What’s the difference between a student attending the inauguration on their own rather to the inauguration rather than going through Worldstrides?
Moroaica: We have a tour guide that covers every location, we have an insurance policy of up to a million dollars per student, we have on-site doctors, we offer online college courses based on the trip to earn credits, and more than anything, Worldstrides and myself try to make it so the students have no worries whatsoever. Breakfast and dinner is included in everything, so really the only thing the students have to do is have fun! It is true that for the inaugural setting it is first come first serve; however, Worldstrides has representatives in D.C. that will already be holding spots for us. In the past, the spots have been very good.
Highlights: So how many students do you have signed up thus far?
Moroaica: So far we have 15 students, the early registration deadline has passed, but students may still register from now up until Nov. 1. And that is the absolute absolute deadline. We would love to have as many as possible. If we get up to 30, then we would have our own bus, we would have our own private tour group. But honestly, anything is going to be exciting.
Highlights: What are the requirements for a student to attend this trip?
Moroaica: It’s open to the school, but it’s also open to the friends and family of the students who are attending the trip, as long as the student has already signed up for it. But it also has to be approved and vetted by me beforehand.
Highlights: What is the cost of the trip?
Moroaica: The cost varies if you want to share a quad or a double, which means four or two people per room, and a quad, I believe, goes for approximately $2400 and that includes admission, flight, hotel and food. The trip itself will run from January 18-22.
Highlights: For say a candidate won that a student disliked, and they’ve already signed up for the trip, what is that student to do?
Moroaica: In regards to attending, let’s say a candidate that we may not want to win, for me it would be Trump, we would be allowed to bring signs and express ourselves, this is America. We have freedom of speech. As long as we do it politely and respectfully we can go there and say so and so is not my president, and it’s a part of America. And it’s not unheard of, every president has people that go and protest.