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“LET’S GO!” FIELD TRIP FUND FAQS

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How Does The “Let’s Go!” Field Trip Fund Grant Program Work?

The “Let’s Go!” Field Trip Fund Grant Program provides grant reimbursement subsidies to eligible schools or youth-serving organizations to help support the cost of transportation for their science, nature, outdoor or environmental-based field trips. Transportation subsidy payments are only provided after a field trip has been completed – we will reimburse applicants between $500-1000/bus, depending on location (see additional details below). We do not directly provide or coordinate bus transportation.

IMPORTANT: The “Let’s Go!” Field Trip Fund supports the cost of transportation, only. This grant can not be used to cover entrance fees, program costs, parking or any other ancillary expenses.

We do not coordinate any program scheduling through this grant. That is the responsibility of the teachers or school representatives. You should request your desired field trip dates and programs with your field trip provider before submitting your application.

Who is eligible?

For the 2026/2027 school year, we are currently only able to reimburse applications from schools or youth-serving organizations within San Mateo County, and who meet the following eligibility requirements:

    • For San Mateo County Schools and Organizations (supported by the Sand Hill Foundation):
      • All participants must be from within San Mateo County.
      • Field trips must be predominantly an outdoors or nature-based experience. Indoor (only) experiences are not currently eligible for funding.
    • For ALL Applicants:
      • The school must have at least 60% of its population designated as socioeconomically disadvantaged. Youth-serving organizations must serve a majority of these schools (or students must come from neighborhoods supported by these schools). See how to verify eligibility level below.
      • All field trips must have a science, nature, outdoor or environmental focus. Specific field trips may be disqualified based on EV staff discretion.
      • Field trips to for-profit institutions are not eligible. Only field trips to sites managed by non-profit or governmental organizations are eligible.
      • Field trips must take place before June 30th, and must be part of the current school year (we can not support summer programs at this time).
      • Each class or group of students is eligible for one grant per school year.
      • When possible, grade teams should apply together for one grant award.

We are always seeking additional funding to support this program. If your county is not currently supported, please apply anyway and get on our waitlist. And check back again soon!

How do I know if my school or group is eligible?

Before submitting your application, make sure to verify that your school/participant population meets the level of eligibility (at least 60% or greater) from at least ONE of the following databases:

We will use whichever metric indicates the highest level of need to determine a school’s or organization’s eligibility.

How much will the grant subsidize?

The “Let’s Go!” Field Trip Fund provides transportation reimbursement subsidies to successful grant applicants as follows:

    • The maximum subsidy is $500-1000 per bus (depending on location as determined by the funders, not distance). Additional costs will be the responsibility of the applicant school/organization.
    • The fund will do everything possible to support as many buses as are required to allow your entire grade/student population to participate in the requested field trip. However, some limits may be applied.
    • The fund supports either round-trip transportation for a to/from field trip (not overnight), OR a single date (and single direction) for an overnight field trip.
    • The “Let’s Go!” Field Trip Fund supports the cost of direct student transportation, only. This grant can not be used to cover entrance fees, program costs, luggage transport, parking or any other ancillary expenses.

What types of field trips are eligible for this program?

In general, the “Let’s Go!” Field Trip Fund grant program supports field trips that are science, nature or environmental-based, or field trips that take place in outdoor settings. Examples include field trips to Science Museums, Zoos, Open Space Preserves, Nature Camps, etc. But specific eligibility may change from year-to-year. For the 2026/2027 school year, the following types of field trips (only) are currently eligible for funding:

      • For San Mateo County Schools and Organizations: Field trips must be predominantly an outdoors or nature-based experience. Indoor (only) experiences, such as museums and aquariums, are not currently eligible for funding.
      • All others will be waitlisted.

Field trips to for-profit institutions (such as amusement parks, pumpkin patches, etc.) are not eligible.

Who can apply on behalf of my school or youth-serving organization?

Whenever possible, we ask for applications to be submitted directly by the teachers or educators whose class(es) will be attending the field trip. Otherwise, school teachers, principals, office staff, parent volunteers, and organization staff/educators are welcome to apply on behalf of a class or student group.

What is a “youth-serving organization”?

For the purposes of the “Let’s Go!” Field Trip Fund, a “youth-serving organization” is considered an out-of-school program or organization that serves youth or young adults (birth to 24 years). Youth-serving organizations must specifically serve a low-income community within Santa Clara County, with a 60% FRPM or greater.

NOTE: If you are the field trip provider applying on behalf of a school group (i.e. for a field trip taking place during school hours), we strongly encourage that you have the participating teachers apply for this grant. Otherwise, please apply under the “School” designation and complete as much information as possible.

How do I apply?

Teachers/Organizational staff are expected to do a little preparation before submitting an application:

    1. Before applying, contact the location or field trip provider you are interested in working with to make sure they have capacity to provide a field trip for your students. Applications must have a designated location in order to be considered for support (i.e. TBD is not an acceptable response, and your application will not be considered). We do not coordinate any program scheduling through this grant. That is the responsibility of the teachers or school representatives.
    2. Check with other teachers in your grade to make sure you aren’t duplicating effort; there should only be one application for each grade team if you’re all attending the same field trip location.
    3. Submit your application based on the time of year your field trip is tentatively scheduled to take place: Fall/Winter or Spring. Follow additional instructions on the application form.
    4. If your date(s) or location need to change, let us know at bus@environmentalvolunteers.org as soon as possible. Changes reported after the field trip has already taken place may void your grant eligibility.
    5. As soon as possible, confirm who will be providing your actual transportation (see below).
    6. Funding is limited; grants will be awarded on a rolling basis as long as funding is available.

WHEN Should I apply?

Applications for the “Let’s Go!” Field Trip Fund must be submitted before your field trip is scheduled to take place. We cannot fund field trips retroactively.

IMPORTANT: Make sure you use the correct application for your field trip.

      • Fall/Winter Field Trips (Aug-Feb) – NOW OPEN*
      • Spring Field Trips (Mar-June) – CLOSED. Will open in November*
      • We do not currently support Summer field trips.

Funding for each time period is calculated differently, sometimes with different eligibility requirements, and grant awards generally can not be rolled over between one application to the next.

*Funding is extremely limited and may not support the full cost of your transportation. You should submit your application as soon as you’ve planned your field trip (but see notes above). You are also strongly encouraged to continue to seek additional funding for your transportation needs.

How do I reserve a bus?

Check first with your school district to see if district buses are available. If your district does not have buses and you do not have access to buses from another district, please use the transportation service with the lowest cost. We recommend First Student, or Durham School Services, but there may be other good alternatives in different areas. The Environmental Volunteers does not directly coordinate bus reservations.

How do I get my money?

The “Let’s Go!” Field Trip Fund grant program is a reimbursement-based program. To receive reimbursement, after your field trip has been completed, please send a copy of the official bus invoice and the completed Reimbursement Form that you received from us to Bus@environmentalvolunteers.org. Invoices must be the actual invoice from the transportation provider (school district or private charter company); handwritten copies are not acceptable. Please note that reimbursement checks to individuals are strongly discouraged, and can only be provided if the reimbursement request is accompanied by a signed Admin letter on school letterhead. Reimbursement checks will be sent to the address designated on the submitted Reimbursement Form.

In most cases, the school will need to pay the up front costs of the transportation to the bus company, and the “Let’s Go!” Field Trip Fund will reimburse the school. We can not send payment in advance of a field trip.

IMPORTANT: Reimbursement paperwork (the completed Reimbursement Request form and the official transportation invoice) is due no later than 30 days after your field trip has been completed. Paperwork that is not received within this timeframe may cause your grant award to be canceled, and funding reallocated to another school.

What happens if my Field trip Changes?

After you’ve submitted your application, any changes to your field trip (especially location, time of year, number of buses needed, and grades of students participating) must be communicated to us at Bus@environmentalvolunteers.org before your field trip takes place, as some changes may impact your grant eligibility. Changes requested after the field trip has already taken place may result in funding cancellation.

As a general rule, we are unable to roll over funding between one application window and the next, and you may be required to submit a new application with the new information. Some exceptions apply. EV staff will discuss options when you notify us of your changes.

 

Have additional comments or feedback? Please contact Bus@environmentalvolunteers.org

K-6 School Programs

"Let's Go!" Field Trip Fund Grant Program

The “Let’s Go!” Field Trip Fund has been operating since 2011.