When a pack of Hersey High School teachers and students hit the highway over spring break, they will board a van headed to Washington, D.C., with hopes of carving out their niche in digital history.
On Saturday, the entourage will embark upon a 13-hour road trip to the East Coast, which is expected to include visits to the White House, the Holocaust Museum and Gettysburg, Pa.
But unlike the typical class trip to the nation’s Capitol, the cornerstone of the experience will be documenting the journey on-line.
Indeed, teacher Kent Borghoff said that officials with District 214 were so impressed with the students’ mission to use the latest technology over their spring break that the trip is being supported by a grant that will help offset a portion of the costs.
“This will be entirely digital. There is no paper and film,” said Borghoff, who teaches the American Studies class with Kyle Marquette. “We thought it would be a neat ’90s thing to do.”
Instead of scribbling their memories in traditional journals, the students will be sharing three laptops and a digital camera. Each day, they will file a journal entry and pictures of their travels.
For Jack Godwin, 17, the trip to Washington, D.C., will be bittersweet.
“When I was in 8th grade, I signed up for the Washington, D.C., trip that everyone goes on,” he said, “but my grandfather died two weeks before, so I couldn’t go.
“I also want to go because my father fought in Vietnam, and I want to see the names of his friends . . . on the Wall.”
Joanna Littleton, 17, a resident of Maryville in Des Plaines, said she is looking forward to the trip. “It’s our history and I want to see where America was built.”
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MORE ON THE INTERNET: Check in each day for the latest travelogue entry penned by the students. chicago.tribune.com/go/dc
