STAUNTON, VA (Rocktown Now) — Shelburne Middle School has been awarded a $2,500 grant from the American Battlefield Trust’s History Field Trip Grant Program that will allow the entire sixth-grade class to visit the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Quantico in November.

The trip will give approximately 210 students an immersive, hands-on history experience. Shelburne teachers Melanie Argenbright, Lauren Obaugh, and Kendra Thompson, along with Instructional Coach Jennifer Turner, are coordinating the effort.

“Hands-on learning like this helps history come alive for our students. We are so grateful for the support that makes opportunities like this possible,” said Instructional Coach Jennifer Turner.

The American Battlefield Trust is the nation’s largest battlefield land preservation organization and has saved more than 58,000 acres of hallowed ground across 24 states. Its History Field Trip Grant Program supports K–12 educators nationwide in providing students with meaningful opportunities to connect with America’s past.

“These kids get a chance to go to where history was made, where our country was created and defined,” said Trust President David Duncan of the History Field Trip Grant Program recipients. “Battlefields are outdoor classrooms that will teach future Americans about our democratic republic.”

Every year, the Trust receives applications from classrooms across the country to participate in the History Field Trip Grant Program, which offers funding and assistance to K-12 teachers planning field trips to Civil War, War of 1812, or Revolutionary War battlefields and related historic sites. During the 2023-2024 school year, more than 10,000 students from 33 states took part.