Students Head to Washington, D.C. for America’s 250th Anniversary

This week, Wagner Faith & Freedom Center Distinguished Chair Will Wagner is leading a group of students from Fond du Lac Christian School in Wisconsin on a six-day trip to Washington, D.C. With the nation preparing to celebrate its 250th anniversary, there is no better time for young people to visit the very places where America’s founding ideals took shape.

The trip centers on a six-day curriculum covering the U.S. Constitution, principles of good governance, and Christian character development. Uniquely equipped, having served in all three branches of the federal government, Will is taking students beyond mere sightseeing. Each day includes lectures and presentations that connect the monuments, memorials, and founding documents to the biblical worldview that influenced them.

Past Wagner Faith & Freedom Center trips to Washington have brought students to sites such as the World War II Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument, the Jefferson Memorial, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, the Museum of the Bible, the Supreme Court, the Library of Congress, the National Archives, Arlington National Cemetery, the U.S. Capitol, the White House, Mount Vernon, and the Holocaust Museum. At each stop, lectures draw out the Christian heritage running through America’s history and institutions.

Will Wagner spoke to why this kind of formation matters for the students making the trip:

“We are committed to equipping the next generation to lead with both conviction and courage, grounded in faith, guided by truth, and devoted to the preservation of freedom. In our nation’s capital, students will not only study the principles that shaped America, but be inspired to live them out with purpose and integrity.”

— Will Wagner, Distinguished Chair, Wagner Faith & Freedom Center

As the country marks this milestone, the Wagner Faith & Freedom Center continues its work of passing on the principles that shaped this nation to a generation ready to live them out with faith, integrity, and purpose.