For two weeks before spring break, the school suspends regular classes and conducts Special Programs. Students divide into small groups led by staff members, each pursuing its own activity. One group may go snowboarding while another group paints murals in our halls or builds kites to fly at the Berkeley Marina. Other popular programs have included film-making, sewing, and drama. Over the years, we have also traveled all over the world, visiting such places as Austria, Baja California, Belize, China, Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, Egypt, France, Greece, Japan, and Peru. There are thousands of photos, and blogs from our 2010 trips to New Orleans, Italy, and Vietnam.

(See a map of our Special Programs)

Special Programs allow students to explore areas of interest in depth and outside of the structure of our usual academic schedule. They also foster a sense of community among students, who spend an extended period of time together pursuing a common goal. Our travel programs expose students first-hand to other cultures.

Special Programs are a required part of our curriculum. They are worth 5 units and are graded P/NP. A catalog of program descriptions is published before the winter break. In the interest of fairness, we use a lottery system to place students in programs of their choice.

Expenses for special programs are in addition to tuition. Because we want all students to have the opportunity to travel, we offer financial aid for travel Special Programs in the form of Jeremy Harrison Scholarships. These scholarships, which are endowed by the family of a former student in his memory, are available to students in their third or fourth year at Maybeck who are on reduced tuition and have not participated in a travel program.

Special Programs - 2012

• INDIA
• GUATEMALA: LA RUTA MAYA
• HAWAI’I: ALOHA ADVENTURE
• GOING TO CAROLINA WITH GEORGIA ON OUR MIND!
• DESERT ECOLOGY: JOSHUA TREE AND THE MOJAVE
• SAIL AWAY - AN ON THE BAY SAILING PROGRAM
• BAY AREA WORLD MUSIC EXPLORATIONS
• RHYTHM AND MOTION: AN EXPLORATION OF WORLD DANCE
• SAVORY CINEMA: A SAMPLING OF FILMS AND FOODS FROM AROUND THE WORLD
• MURALS - REDO AND RENEW THE MAYBECK CAMPUS MURALS
• DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY

See the full description of our 2012 Special Programs.

Also see these complete descriptions of previous years' programs: 2011 - 2010 - 2009 - 2008 - 2007 - 2006