The latest terror attacks in Belgium on Tuesday could see the Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows school board craft a policy to guide its decisions on future class trips to Europe.
“I think, as a board, we’ll probably be looking at policies around this sort of thing,” school board chair Mike Murray said. “We certainly want to be careful.”
Murray said staff are already reviewing a draft set of guidelines and further discussion will involve parents.
But he pointed out that parents and students spend a lot of time and money to go on a spring break trip, which often can be the trip of a lifetime.
“So we have to respect that, as well.”
Suicide bombers blew themselves up in two locations in Brussels, Belgium. One attack hit the Brussels Airport, while another hit a subway line in the city centre, killing a total of 31 people and injuring scores.
Islamic State has said it launched the attack.
Brussels Airport is going to remain closed for the rest of the week.
Three Maple Ridge school groups were in Europe at the time and returned at the end of this week. Two groups went to France, while a third went to Spain. None travelled through Belgium.
In December, the school board came close to canceling the trips after bombings and mass killings in Paris on Nov. 13, killing 130 people.
At that time, 70 students from Garibaldi, Thomas Haney, Maple Ridge and Westview secondary schools were to have gone to Europe for language, culinary arts and cultural purposes.
However, parents, staff and students discussed the issue and early in the new year decided to continue with their trips.
“They all basically came to the same conclusion, in concert with parents, that they wished the trips to proceed,” Murray said.
“If the Government of Canada had said, ‘Don’t go there,’ we wouldn’t have gone there.”
Other school districts in the Metro Vancouver area followed the same approach.
Murray said the recent attack has changed the context. People may have looked at the Paris attacks as a one-time occurrence.
“Now, of course, we have a second one in a relatively short period of time. I’m not sure what the discussion could be like.”
He added the board will probably talk to parents and students.
“It certainly begs a discussion.”
Whatever the school board decides likely will also reflect policies in other school districts in Metro Vancouver.
Murray hadn’t heard anything from staff or parents or families who were in Europe for the past two weeks.
School director of instruction Shannon Derinzy said on Tuesday that staff have checked with all three groups who returned home at the end of this week.
“All students and staff are safe and enjoying their trips, “ she said.
“As with any field trip, the safety of our students and staff is always our top priority. We are happy that all three groups are happy and safe, and look forward to welcoming them back home soon.”