Upper School Cascades Course Catalog Now Available

Cascades Programs take place from Tuesday, June 1 through Tuesday, June 15, 2027.

In order for Upper School students to receive required Cascades Credit, students must attend the full duration of the Cascades Program including the Exhibition of Learning on Tuesday, June 15. Families should make sure to not schedule employment opportunities or family travel until after Tuesday, June 15.  

Please read the catalog carefully in preparation for the Cascades Fair on Friday, September 11.  

Registration will open from Friday, September 11 through Wednesday, September 23, 2026. Families will be sent grade-specific links in the Bulletin on Thursday, September 10 which will open for registration directly after the Cascades Fair on Friday, September 11. Students will receive a reminder on Friday, September 11 when the links go live. 

 All of Bush’s Additional Fee travel programs are designed to stretch students and to guide them into an inquiry about the country’s culture, current strengths/ struggles, and history. We engage in these types of immersion programs because they inform and shape students as both US and world citizens. This is as important now as it has ever been.

Our Additional Fee Cascades Programs demand mental and emotional energy and high levels of engagement each day from students. If students are interested in being tourists or taking “a break from their academic schedule” or thinking about engaging in any type of illicit or illegal behavior, students should reconsider enrolling in an Additional Fee Cascades Program at this time. Please remember that our travel partners' rules and in-country laws are often very strict and when these are broken it can result in real consequences for our students.  

Students who attend these programs should be genuinely interested and committed to spending each day of the program learning and engaging in conversations about the culture, history, and current events of that country.  Students who attend these programs are not allowed to opt out of activities or days.  

When students are attending a Bush Additional Fee Program in a different country, they are representatives of The Bush School, and we expect students to demonstrate high levels of integrity, curiosity, engagement and respect throughout the program.

Finally, students who do not demonstrate readiness, maturity and respect throughout the school year, will not be allowed to participate in these programs.  

Please read through the Overnight and Additional Fee Travel Cascades Information page in this catalog carefully as it reviews phone/network device policies, behavioral/evacuation policies, additional insurance policies and readiness policies.