Webb Schools Keep Senior Trip Tradition Alive

Webb’s seniors are celebrating the end of their high school journeys with a “senior trip experience” that keeps alive the traditions of senior class hiking trips while ensuring safety during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In years past, seniors from the Webb School of California would visit the Grand Canyon, tackling the grueling 17-mile hike to the bottom and back. Vivian Webb School seniors would visit Yosemite, scaling the iconic 5,000-foot Half Dome.

During the trips, Vivian Webb students would review letters they wrote to themselves as freshmen and share their reflections. Webb School of California students would pass a rock hammer as they shared final thoughts with classmates.

“These traditions allow our seniors to reflect in a meaningful way on their last four years and strengthen their bonds as they begin the next stage of their lives,” said Sonsoles Cardalliaguet, Vivian Webb senior class advisor. “It’s also a lot of fun to take one last trip as a class.”

This year, those trips couldn’t happen because of the pandemic.

But conditions have improved enough to allow seniors to come to campus for a week-long residential program that features camping under the stars, a night hike, beach excursions, snorkeling, campfires, a formal dinner with an open mic and music, movie night and food truck visits.

The program runs June 6-10.

For the first time in Webb history, the two schools are celebrating the end of the year together.

“It seems appropriate for them to join together for much of the event – they navigated this incredibly weird year together and now they get to celebrate it together,” said Stephen Caddy, senior class advisor for the Webb School of California.

Each school is still holding a separate reflection event.

The week’s activities will be followed June 11 by candlelight ceremonies in which seniors symbolically pass leadership of the school to juniors, and on June 12 by commencement ceremonies.