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Paso Robles Parents Worrying About Trips for Graduates: They Fear Their Kids Will Get into a Situation Such As Natalee Holloway Did; She Disappeared in Aruba

Posted on: Tuesday, 20 June 2006, 12:00 CDT

By Nick Wilson, The Tribune, San Luis Obispo, Calif.

Jun. 20--Parents and teachers in Paso Robles are voicing concerns about a business recruiting students at the high school for postgraduation trips to Mexico.

Representatives from WorldPass Travel Group visited Paso Robles High School several times this school year to promote weeklong excursions to Cancun and Cabo San Lucas. The packages, targeting students who soon will be graduating from high school, include round-trip travel and lodging for reduced rates.

Some parents say they fear a Natalee Holloway situation, referring to the Alabama teen who disappeared in Aruba in May 2005 on a postgraduate trip.

But some students and the chairman of WorldPass Travel Group contend the trips are safe and parents shouldn't worry.

The company lines up round-trip airfare and hotel accommodations for seven-night trips to places such as Cancun, Puerto Vallarta and Cabo San Lucas (all in Mexico), Hawaii and the Bahamas.

Companies such as WorldPass have pitched their student trips at high schools around the county in years past.

This school year, Paso Robles High teacher Denise Conte, the school's activities director, received calls from 10 to 15 parents inquiring about the Mexico trips -- and wondering if they were school-sponsored.

"This is not a school event," Conte said. "If your child approaches you about this, don't assume it's through the school. Parents should ask questions and find out what it's all about."

The school doesn't endorse such trips, and company representatives aren't supposed to advertise on campus, according to Principal Ed Railsback.

Conte pointed out that the legal drinking age in Mexico is 18 and parents need to be aware teens will be in a foreign country largely left on their own.

But Alyssa Record, a student organizing a trip for the Class of 2007, said she believes students are no more likely to drink on one of these trips than if they stay home, because many teens are motivated to find alcohol even here at home.

Already, 26 students have signed up for the Class of 2007 trip, Record said. They each paid $100 for a nonrefundable deposit and must pay an additional $500 next year.

Plans for a Cancun trip initiated by the Class of 2006 fell through, said recent graduate Adi Cisneros, because there wasn't enough interest.

Cisneros and Record both were approached by company representatives on campus. The company offers a free trip, minus the $100 deposit, as an incentive to students who recruit 50 classmates, Record said.

"Everything is very organized, and this organization has had a good reputation over the years," Record said. "They convince you that it's safe."

Record said the company held a meeting with parents in April to answer questions.

WorldPass chairman John Duby said no serious problems have occurred on company trips.

The company -- based in El Dorado Hills, Calif. -- started in 1976 and began hosting trips for high school graduates in the 1980s. They sell adult travel packages as well, he said.

"We haven't had anything like the Aruba situation happen. The worst we've had are flight delays," Duby said.

Duby said the company has staff in the hotels -- including Marriott, Hyatt and other well-known companies -- where the high school grads typically stay.

The company doesn't chaperone the teens. But for safety, each guest is provided a 24-hour emergency contact number and wears a wristband for easy identification, Duby said.

A man whose son graduated from Paso Robles High last week thinks some students can handle responsibility.

"If you can trust your kid, I don't see why they shouldn't go," said parent Greg Moore. "My kid is totally responsible, as far as I'm concerned."

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Tribune, San Luis Obispo, Calif.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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Source: The Tribune (San Luis Obispo, Calif.)

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