Something the students of Mr. Stanton’s AP and CP Civics class have been looking forward to all year is the trip to Washington, D.C. The trip, an annual school tradition, has been a staple of Wheeling Park life for many years; however, it wasn’t always exclusive to the college-level civics classes.

“It can be kind of nerve-wracking because you don’t want anything to go wrong,” said Mr. Stanton. “The most challenging part is to figure out how much money everything is going to cost and just making sure that it all actually happens.”

Before the trip, there were countless fundraising opportunities for students to help cover the cost, making it available to many more students.

Everyone involved in the trip had some shared experiences. The entire group on the trip experienced the African American History Museum, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Arlington Cemetery, as well as a multitude of monuments throughout the city.

Additionally, everyone was split off into smaller groups, giving everyone a unique experience and the ability to view whatever they wanted.

“We walked to go see the Lincoln Memorial…and we saw the Vietnam Memorial,” said Taylor Miller, a senior who participated in the trip.

“We went to have lunch at this wonderful sushi and ramen place, then we went to an art museum and saw the Washington Monument,” said Ava Norman, a senior from a different group.

Both Taylor Miller and Ava Norman said the Holocaust Memorial Museum was their favorite experience of the trip, showing a common interest among all students participating and speaking to the great care and detail that was placed into the creation of the museum.

Overall, Wheeling Park High School’s Washington, D.C. trip was a clear success that gave many students the opportunity to learn more about the world around them and will continue to be a tradition for many years to come.