Launch Trip
The Quest Launch Experience
The Quest program firmly believes that education can and should exist beyond the classroom.
Launch Trip Aims
In the first days of the Quest program, students will discover themselves through technology-free interaction with nature. The unit is designed so that students may: (1) learn about collaboration, initiative, and endurance in a non-urban setting; (2) build relationships with self and others in absence of technology; (3) develop community and a positive connection with their Questmates; (4) cultivate awareness, knowledge, appreciation, and concern for the natural environment and the effect of people’s actions upon it; (5) get an introduction to the skills expected in the program.
The first academic unit for the Quest program begins while on this trip; therefore there are academic expectations, in-field lessons for content knowledge and skill attainment, and course assignments and grades earned during Launch Week. For example, Quest teachers will integrate curriculum including data analysis and visualization math skills, social studies (cultural curiosity of local communities, and investigation into the economics and cultural practices of the region), English (written and oral reflections on learnings), and environmental science (conservation of natural resources) while on the trip.
“Learning beyond the classroom walls not only enriches what students learn in class, but it also enhances students’ role as global diplomats, both on and off campus” (Myra M. Goldschmidt, Debbie Lamb Ousey and Christine Brown in Research and Teaching in Developmental Education, Vol. 28, No. 1 (Fall 2011), pp. 34-40).
Launch week 2024: Nusa Lembongan, Bali, Indonesia
launch dates: 4-9 August, 2024
All Quest students are expected to participate in Launch Week. The first day of Launch will be orientation and trip preparation in the Quest room. Stay tuned for more details!
The aims of our Quest Launch Trip 2024 are to:
Build the Quest Community of Learners
Bond as a Team and Build Understanding and Trust
Conduct Quantitative and Qualitative Fieldwork in the Tropical Environment
Explore Resource Conservation Issues through Experiential Learning
Build Data Analysis Skills
Engage in Service-Learning
Engage in Meaningful and Respectful Cultural Exchange
Forge New Friendships
Launch week 2023: Nusa Lembongan, Bali, Indonesia
launch dates: 28 JULY - 3 August, 2023
Launch Week 2022: Nusa Lembongan, Bali, Indonesia
Quest students and advisors traveled to Bali and Nusa Lembongan, Indonesia for the 2022 Launch Week. We were excited that travel restrictions eased to allow for us to participate in this incredible opportunity.
Click the icon BELOW to see a Youtube Short for more video footage of Quest Launch Trip '22 highlights.
Launch Week Weekend 2021: SINGAPORE SINGAPORE American school
PLAN C LAUNCH WEekend DUE TO PANdemic-related restrictions
The 2021-2022 Quest program was embarking on a new direction for the program by creating two cohorts, two One-Day Quest cohorts (an A-Day cohort and a B-Day cohort), along with a Two-Day senior-only cohort. We knew heading into the new school year that overseas travel with the traditional Launch trips Quest is known for would not be possible due to the pandemic travel restrictions. The plan was to run a similar immersive experience as the previous year as we continued to modify the 'Launch' experience due to the pandemic restrictions. With announcements of further restrictions put into place just days before the start of the school year, Launch Week had to be drastically modified. Off-campus excursions would not be possible. In true Quest fashion, we worked collaboratively and stayed solutions-focused to make lemonade out of lemons by capitalizing on the Summer Olympics Tokyo events running concurrently with our Launch Weekend. Quest students spent the weekend participating in a series of team-building challenges on the SAS campus while getting a jump-start on preparation for partnerships by drafting resumes, cover letters, setting up their LinkedIn accounts, developing a website for their professional portfolio, and creating business cards. It is our sincere hope we will be able to launch this year's cohort into a professional environment. Here is hoping Semester 2 of 2022 provides terrific opportunities to return to off-campus and off-island experiences for our students.
Click through the photos (below) to view some of the photos from our Summer Olympics-themed team-building activities during our Launch Weekend on the SAS campus in August 2021.
Launch Trip Week 2020: coral triangle, Indonesia Singapore
PLAN B LAUNCH WEEK DUE TO PANdemic-related TRAVEL restrictions
The 2020-2021 Quest cohort was all prepared to spend 10 days scuba diving and engaging in marine conservation research within the coral triangle of Indonesia. Unfortunately the Covid-19 pandemic led to a change of plans. Quest advisors spent the summer redesigning the Launch experience to develop 8 days of on-island excursions to explore Singapore's natural and cultural heritage. While it wasn't the incredible launch experience originally planned, the core of what Launch Week is intended for, which is to build the Quest community and provide opportunities for students to get to know themselves better through stepping out of their comfort zone, was still accomplished. Launch Week 2020 built a solid foundation of forging friendships and trust within the Quest community, as well as ample opportunity for self-discovery.
Launch trip 2019: Rawa Island, Malaysia
The 2019-2020 Quest cohort spent their Launch Week learning about the impact of people of marine environments and vice versa @ Rawa Island Resort, Malaysia. Working with OrcaNation, students had the opportunity to become certified open-water scuba divers.
Launch trip 2018: Mongolia
The Quest program returned to Mongolia again for 2018-2019 Quest cohort's Launch Week. Again, students tested their limits mentally and physically as they challenged themselves through immersive experiences in Mongolia's beautiful landscape.
Launch trip 2017: mongolia
The 2017-2018 Quest cohort embarked on a new location for Launch Week, exploring Mongolia's bountiful natural beauty. Students spent time in nature camping, hiking, and canoeing and building bonds with the members of their new community.
Launch trip 2016: Canada
The 2016-2017 Quest cohort was the first year of Quest students. This senior-only cohort started the inaugural year of the program immersing themselves for three weeks of their summer in the Canadian wilderness, testing the boundaries of themselves physically and mentally through experiential learning experiences in outdoors, which included backpacking, paddling and camping for days on end. The bonds forged on this Launch trip, as our first Quest alumni, who are now in their early 20s as young professionals, were some of the most impactful opportunities for personal growth during formative years of high school.
