The School Without Walls at Francis-Stevens (SWWFS), located in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood of Washington, DC, is the result of School Without Walls Senior High School, Francis Junior High School, and Stevens Elementary School, merging over a six year period, to establish a challenging and rigorous academic program with a global perspective, for pre-school through eighth grade students in the District of Columbia. Our school and campus have a legacy of achievement and excellence and it is the foundation on which School Without Walls at Francis-Stevens is built.

Committed to the belief that ALL children should have the opportunity to have experiential learning outside of the classroom, our dedicated Middle School Teachers are planning an educational school trip to Costa Rica. Nineteen of our students will have the chance to explore cloud forests, rainforests, hike along an active volcano, and get to know the locals. And that’s just the beginning! Students will experience this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity where the vibrant culture and wildlife of Costa Rica are literally their classroom.

The fieldtrip plan is to explore and learn about Costa Rica over a 7 day period through science, math and writing about their experiences. The aim is to use this opportunity to gain valuable knowledge of various experiential learning opportunities in different cultural, environmental and economic settings. We have learned from work in the school classrooms and previous fieldtrips through the DC and the Metro area, that practical experience and visual learning is invaluable to students, complimenting their studies each day on campus in Foggy Bottom. The added exposure to overseas opportunities will broaden the knowledge, build contacts and experience even further and should lead to a more complete view of what global education is all about.

Some of our families have been able to secure funds for their students but others need some additional support. Our school community believes in supporting every students' right to have access to every possible opportunity that comes along. Please help us reach our $10,000 goal so that each of our students can go.