In the summer of 2026, OHS students have the opportunity to embark on an educational tour of Greece and Italy. This immersive cultural experience will guide students through Rome, Florence and Athens as well as other cities.
“A trip that goes somewhere I’ve never been and hits my favorite place to visit, it was a no-brainer,” English teacher and trip chaperone Taylor Jokerst said.
The company that the group is traveling with, EF tours, emphasizes cultural immersion, education and building relationships, oftentimes with other students from different schools depending on the size of the group.
“We’ve had 50 to 75 people sign up for interest meetings, so right now I think our crew is nine total. It’s looking like we’ll probably partner up with another school to go on the trip,” Jokerst said.
While some students have developed concerns about the trip despite having prior travel experience, like Abby Coxwell (11) who is nervous about traveling outside the country without their parents for the first time, others feel that the excitement of the trip rather than the anxiety.
“There’s not really anything I’m super nervous about,” Katie Jacobs (11) said. “I’ve traveled enough to know that it will be a really fun time, and I know we’ll be able to handle anything.”
Whether it’s trying new food, learning about a country’s history or interacting with locals, each student has a different reason for traveling.
“I’ve wanted to go to Europe and especially Greece for a while because I love Greek mythology,” Coxwell said, “so whenever my mom told me about it, I was really excited.”
For one student, this will be his second travel experience through OHS after visiting South America the previous summer.
“Visiting Peru made me want to see more of the world and just put myself out there,” Sebastian Ahmetasevic (11) said.
Jokerst hopes that his students realize that this trip is just a sample of what these beautiful cities have to offer and that revisiting these cities and spending a week is a completely different experience.
“You’re getting the beautiful, wonderful highlight reel, but there’s also so much more behind that that you miss out on when you’re only in a city for a day,” Jokerst said.
