MARBLEHEAD — More than 30 Marblehead High School students and their chaperones have been stranded in Paris for nearly a week following a school-sponsored international trip, raising questions about travel logistics, costs, and the district’s oversight of overseas student travel.
At Thursday night’s School Committee meeting, Superintendent John Robidoux addressed the situation publicly, saying the students were delayed due to a winter storm but are expected to return home on Friday.
“We had a great trip planned to Spain and Morocco that by all accounts has been a great experience for the students,” Robidoux said. “Despite being stopped in Paris for a few extra days due to the storm, Dan Richards and all the chaperones have worked tirelessly to ensure that our students are safe. They have been well taken care of despite the huge shift in plans.”
Robidoux said the students will return on Friday, with one exception.
One student misplaced a passport and will remain temporarily in France with a chaperone.
“We did have one student who misplaced their passport,” Robidoux said. “Dan Richards is working with that student’s parents and the student. They have a meeting at the embassy in the morning… to get the emergency passport, and they’ll be on a subsequent flight. But everyone should be home tomorrow.”
Robidoux also said absences related to the delay will be excused.
“I’ve spoken to Dr. Carlson, and the absences will be absolved given extraordinary circumstances,” he said.
“The tour company has absorbed the cost of the extra hotel stay, the change of flights, and provided breakfast and dinner for the extra days,” he said. “So the unplanned costs have been fairly minimal, including having to buy lunch and the entrance to the Louvre.”
School Committee member Jennifer Schaeffner said, in an interview, the superintendent had initially estimated that between 32 and 34 students, along with teacher and administrator chaperones, were affected by the extended delay.
She said the length of the delay was far beyond what school officials would typically expect.
“A one- or two-day delay I can see, but this is basically six days,” she said in an interview.
During Thursday’s meeting, Schaeffner raised concerns about how the situation was communicated to the full committee, saying she learned of the issue from community members before receiving a formal briefing.
“Having students stranded abroad for multiple days is what I would call a little out of the ordinary,” Schaeffner said.
Committee Chair Al Williams responded that he had been briefed but did not consider the matter to rise to the level of an emergency requiring notification of the full committee.
“It didn’t rise to an emergency,” Williams said. “I did not feel that it needed the involvement of the full School Committee because it did not meet the criteria of an emergency.”
Schaeffner disagreed, calling the situation “extraordinary” and stating that committee members should have been informed.
“I think you’ve overstepped in your role as chair, because that is not the role of the chair to be withholding information…. So it’s your definition of an emergency, maybe somebody else’s definition of an emergency,” might differ she said.
She said she wanted to consider the possibility of “doing another training around the role of the chair.
“It is not the prerogative of the chair to make judgment calls like that when it comes to school committee members not having information about what’s going on in the district,” she said.
Williams responded by saying, “Even if it’s operational, Jen, you stand by that?”
Schaeffner responded by saying, “It’s nothing to do with operations. It’s a fact about an extraordinary situation with a group of students.”
“My concern from the beginning was the safety and security of our students,” she said in an interview.
The Marblehead School Committee approved the international trip during its May 15, 2025, public meeting, after administrators and faculty presented detailed information about the itinerary, educational purpose, logistics, and safety precautions. The trip appeared on the official meeting agenda as an item requiring committee approval, and minutes show members voted unanimously to authorize the travel.
The trip was originally proposed as travel to Spain and Morocco. Schaeffner said the proposal evolved as logistical and financial considerations were reviewed.
“We talked a lot about it because the original submission… was for a trip to Spain and Morocco,” Schaeffner said in an interview.
Marblehead Public Schools maintains a detailed policy governing international travel, reflecting the district’s frequent sponsorship of overseas educational trips.
The policy states that international field trips are intended to “supplement and extend classroom activities… to broaden perspectives and educational experiences of students.”
Before approval, trip organizers must submit extensive documentation, including a detailed itinerary and travel schedule, estimated number of students and eligibility requirements, cost per student and financing plans, transportation arrangements, lodging details, chaperone supervision ratios, emergency response and medical plans, security measures, contracts and refund policies, and travel advisories for all countries visited.
The policy recommends approximately one chaperone for every six students on international trips, requires background checks for all chaperones, and mandates that trip cancellation insurance be made available.
Students and parents must also sign permission forms acknowledging risks and affirming that the School Committee retains authority to cancel or recall trips if safety conditions warrant.
Although Robidoux said the tour company absorbed most additional costs, questions remain about whether any families will incur expenses related to meals, incidental costs, or rebooking.
District policy states that while officials will attempt to obtain refunds if trips are disrupted, reimbursement is not guaranteed.
Marblehead Public Schools regularly sponsors international trips as part of its educational programming. While officials emphasized that students were safe and well cared for, the extended delay has highlighted the logistical and financial risks associated with overseas travel.
