Originally published in Points West magazine
Fall/Winter 2017
Inspiring Students from MILES away
By Megan K. Smith
K – 12 Curriculum and Digital Learning Specialist
When I close my eyes and bring to mind an image of the future, the students of the early twenty-first century are adults twenty, thirty, and even forty years from now. They may have children of their own, and someday grandchildren. As they grow and raise their own families, they foster in their children a legacy and compass just as their parents and teachers are leading them today. This generational inheritance is not new. Yet, as an educational institution, the Buffalo Bill Center of the West is compelled to share in the upbringing of today’s children. It is our sincere mission to educate, inspire, and serve our community, state, and even our region’s K-12 students.
Throughout the past decade, we’ve explored new and innovative approaches that extend the net we cast through virtual programming. Yet, at the heart of it all in rural Wyoming, we are a museum that must not forget the students whose lives mark the very essence of who we are. These students attend school in rural one-room schools, large regional schools, and schools on nearby reservations. They all share one constant challenge—lack of sufficient funding that limits how they explore, investigate, question, and embrace their own sense of place in the American West.
The Sinclair Companies have generously supported the Center’s MILES (Museum Interpretation, Learning, and Enrichment for Students) program since 2005 in offering often life-changing experiences to these schools and students, developing learning experiences that place the students at the very center of the story.
During the 2016 – 2017 school year, our MILES program—again made possible through the support of the Sinclair Companies—welcomed 1,378 students (33 separate field trips) to the Center, a 20 percent increase from the previous school year. Of these students, more than 700 received lodging and transportation assistance, while 675 students received scholarships to visit the Center, covering both their admission and guided tour fees.
The students, teachers, and chaperones who visit Cody, Wyoming, and the Center of the West travel from schools in Wyoming, Montana, Colorado, and Idaho. Some are in remote and rural areas of the Northern Rocky Mountain West. Others are from cities such as Laramie and Rock Springs, Wyoming, as well as Billings and Bozeman, Montana. We also welcome students from both the Wind River and Crow Reservations. The students’ experiences at the Center enrich their classroom content areas in science, history, art, and culture.
Teachers and students are immersed in a hands-on experience that augments what they learn at school. Time and again, teachers explain that our guided tours about the natural history of Greater Yellowstone, the mountain men of the Rocky Mountain West, the life of Buffalo Bill, and the historic and contemporary cultures of the Plains Indians align perfectly with what students are learning in their classrooms.
However, these MILES field trips that Sinclair so generously sponsors go far beyond the learning and immersive experiences at the Center. Schools that receive transportation and lodging assistance journey to Cody with many students who have never entered the doors of a museum, stayed in a hotel, or been responsible for spending cash for souvenirs. Some may not have even been outside their own hometowns. The awe the students cannot contain is both inspiring and heartwarming. The Center’s educators share these students’ awe, while also shouldering an enormous responsibility. We embrace the students’ perspectives, validating their place in the West. At the same time, we share the vital history, culture, and natural history—all of which reflect the perspectives, cultures, and livelihood of the people who have called this place home for hundreds and even thousands of years.
During the past several years, the Center has had the opportunity to extend its MILES program to offer scholarship assistance for a visit to the Center to schools outside Park County, Wyoming. Many schools and students simply don’t have the funds for the cost of admission or a guided tour at the Center. Thanks again to Sinclair, the Center provides accessibility to any K-12 school group (public, private, or home school) in our region who would not otherwise be able to visit us.
While the Center believes completely in this ever-important program, the students and teachers provide the true testimony to their experiences. Here are just a few highlights of why teachers and students benefit so much from the MILES program:
- We have taken this trip on our “own dime” in the past. We had to stay in sleeping bags on the gym floor and only could afford a one-time visit. The grant provided such a quality experience. This was a testament to the power of learning by doing! –Teacher
- Thanks for making the Cody field trip even more fun and allowing us to learn about animals, Plains Indians, art, the history of firearms (my favorite), and the one and only Buffalo Bill! –Student
- Thank you for having us. I still can’t believe Wyoming has one of the biggest museums in the country. We love it so much. –Student
- My favorite part of the trip was going to the museum, because I got to see stuff I have only seen pictures of. –Student
Feedback we receive is often funny, always honest, and suggests a poignancy that often stops us in our tracks. It reminds us of just how important the MILES program is and the role the Center plays in providing experiences that touch students’ lives. Many school districts in the region are faced with reduced budgets for this school year, and they must make choices about what programs to reduce or eliminate. The Center and Sinclair share the responsibility to provide—and even expand—opportunities for students to participate in the enlightening educational experiences for which the MILES program has become known.
The Sinclair Companies’ ongoing support allows the Center to continue offering programs that meet various state curriculum standards and benchmarks, including guided tours and exhibit exploration. We are also developing new materials that students can use as they explore the many wonders of the Center. Each student departs with a personalized certificate of participation in what we hope will be a reminder of their life-changing experience during their visit to the Center and Cody. After all, these students are the future historians, scientists, educators, community members, and voices of the American West.
Megan Smith is the Center of the West’s K-12 Curriculum and Digital Learning Specialist. She has a Master of Science degree in ecology from the University of New Haven, West Haven, Connecticut, and a Bachelor of Science degree in environmental science from Indiana University at Bloomington. She recently authored and published The Sweet Mango Tree, a new children’s book.
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