XVII. Field Trip Policies

Some departments have budget lines for field trips, which chairs control, and the Dean of Faculty’s Office also has limited funds to support field trips. In general, field trips are funded when they are directly related to a course or to a department’s curriculum, and when there are funds available. The Dean’s Office recognizes that field trips can enrich students’ experience and learning, but they may also involve considerable expense and risk. We generally cannot support field trips that involve airfares or multiple-night stays in hotels because of these factors. A chair should remind faculty in the department that any field trip requires approval from the Dean’s office whether or not they are seeking funding from outside the department.

Informing students: If a faculty member plans to incorporate a field trip, community engagement, or experiential learning component into a course that requires travel off campus, students must be informed ahead of time of any personal or financial responsibilities they will have for participating in those components.  Students must understand that they are expected to adhere to the College's standard Code of Conduct as outlined in the Student Handbook. Faculty and students traveling off campus must be familiar with Hamilton's Title IX protocols.

Requesting Approval and Funding Sources

DOF funds may be requested for field trips that are components of credit-bearing courses. Students are not expected to cover expenses of trips associated with a credit-bearing course. The approval process ensures that faculty are fully informed on policies around issues such as transportation, meals, lodging, and risk management.

• Approval must be sought whether or not
  • You are requesting funds from the DOF Office
  • You have funding from another office on campus
  • You don’t need funding
• Because coordinating details (waivers, transportation, etc.) for field trips takes time to arrange, approval should be sought at least 3 weeks prior to the targeted trip date.
• Trips that have budgets over $1500, involve travel outside of New York State, or require overnight stays must be approved at least 30 days before the proposed trip. 

Requests for DOF funding should provide the following information:

• Whether or not the course is required for the concentration
• How the activity supports the curricular goals of the course, the SLOs of the concentration, and Hamilton’s educational goals
• Department chair/program director approval
• Details of the trip (including dates; destination; number of students; and transportation, food, and lodging arrangements)
• Estimated budget and budget source
• How the activity might be made up if required for the class and a student cannot attend. 

Submitting the Field Trip Form initiates the approval process. A copy of the form will be automatically forwarded to you and the Associate Deans of Faculty. You can anticipate review of your request within two weeks of submission. Submitting the form does not authorize actual disbursement of funds.

Office of Experiential Learning

Faculty are expected to consult with the Director of Experiential Learning, Maddie Carrera, (mcarrera@hamilton.edu) to discuss logistics and budgets prior to submitting the Field Trip form. Maddie has current information on transportation and meal planning, and can help with other logistical and institutional requirements. Checking in with Maddie first will also help faculty develop a more accurate budget for the approval form. Once a trip is approved, the faculty member will work with the Experiential Learning Office to confirm details of the trip, including sharing emergency contact information and coordinating risk management processes. Janelle Perry (jxperry@hamilton.edu) will contact you for the following information:

• Waivers for students
• Transportation arrangements/requests
• List of attendees (student and employee)

Field Trip Funding Form

Information on Reserving College Vans