Students from the metro will make the trip to the nation’s capitol to witness the opening of a new national museum featuring Black American history.
Forty students from Omaha North High Magnet School will be at the opening ceremony of the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
I thought it’d make an amazing opportunity for my students, says Laura Geiger, an English teacher.
The students leave Wednesday morning and will be in Washington, D.C. for five days.
I think it will be a bit of a shock, says senior student Victor Ortiz, 18.
“I feel like we're taught a version [of history] that doesn't embody everything,” he says.
Katera Hamilton, 17, echoes the same sentiment.
“I think I'll be pretty pleasantly overwhelmed,” she says.
To make the trip happen, Gieger worked with other teachers within the Omaha Freedom Writers Foundation and received a $29,000 grant through the Omaha Community Foundation.
The newest Smithsonian’s museum will open Saturday coinciding with a three-day festival.
The students and chaperones will attend the opening ceremony, but return Sunday to take a tour.
“I think that's a huge part of our history that has not been focused [on] and so I think a lot of our students are excited to learn about that,” Geiger says.
The trip also includes a visit to the Lincoln Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery, as well as meet U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse and activist turned Congressman, John Lewis.
Geiger believes the trip will allow students a chance to experience the history they’ve only read about in textbooks.
“I don’t know if I can put it into words. I’m just excited.”
