Students Tour ‘Pictorial’ Memorial On Anniversary Of 9/11 Terror Attacks

SHANNON, Miss. (WCBI) – Everyone who is old enough remembers where we were and what we were doing when we heard about the terror attacks of September 11 2001.
But some high school students weren’t even born when the tragic events unfolded. One history teacher is helping students learn not only about the attacks, but how the nation responded and continues to heal.

Although Kate Burleson was barely a year old when America was attacked on September 11 2001, on this day, she wanted to be a guide for Shannon High School’s 9 11 Memorial.

This is the first year Shannon High School’s hallways have been lined with photos from the fateful day, and its aftermath. US History Teacher James Smallwood came up with the idea for the Memorial.

“In today’s world affairs, we know what’s happening right now, but in order to fully understand what is happening, we have to go back, and understand the roots of the causes, things that are going on today,” Smallwood said.

Each photo has a QR code, which tech savvy students used as part of the walking history exhibit.

The photos are vivid reminders of the horrors of that day, but also of the heroes, first responders, and passengers on United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed into a Pennsylvania field, after passengers and crew tried to overpower Al Qaeda terrorists, who were bound for a target in Washington DC.

“There was a lot of patriotism, I learned about specific people and patriotism, and about how people saved Flight 92, saved many people in the White House, even though everyone on that flight died, they still saved many lives,” said SHS Sophomore Mikayla Reese.

More than 800 students from the middle school and high school visited the memorial.

Smallwood hopes to make the 9 11 Memorial an annual event at Shannon High School.