All SF Elementary School Kids Get A Free Annual Field Trip to Cal Academy of Sciences
Thanks to a unique $20 million gift, every single San Francisco student will get a free field trip to the California Academy of Sciences each year of elementary school, including transportation and tickets. Funding generously provided by philanthropists Arthur and Toni Rembe Rock will ultimately serve nearly 28,000 public and private school kids annually.
An existing endowment of $11 million offers free trips to only fourth- and fifth-graders, but this new funding includes a $9 million increase to specifically to expand the ‘Rock Program’ to cover all students from kindergarten through fifth grade. The endowment also provides on-site science lessons led by academy educators, educational take-home materials in multiple languages, and free teacher workshops.
Furthermore, it covers a free family night for students to bring their parents and siblings for a return visit and elementary school students get unlimited free admission during the school year. The academy plans to phase in the expansion of the Rock Program through 2022.
This gift means SF elementary schools will no longer need to host fundraisers for field trips to California Academy of Sciences. Children can learn about topics like rain forests, geology, coral reefs, or animals like Claude the albino alligator—for free. Currently, about 95% of San Francisco public school fourth- and fifth-graders will be participating in the annual free field trips.
