On Dec. 8, 2025, the class of 2029 had the opportunity to visit the Zekelman Holocaust Center in Farmington Hills, Michigan, to explore the history surrounding World War 2 and the Holocaust. The trip was planned in conjunction with a freshman English unit on “Night,” a memoir by Elie Wiesel detailing his harrowing experience as a Jewish child living under Nazi persecution. The ninth graders had the opportunity to expand their understanding of the book by exploring the history of the Holocaust up close and even getting to hear personal stories from those that survived the tragedy. 

Many students were not only enlightened but emotionally moved by the experience.

“[The most] memorable part for me was… a hallway with a lot of artifacts, of people, specifically Jewish people, and there were, like, things that you would see in your everyday life, like, 20s, and weddings, and journals, and it was just very impactful to see how it can happen to six young people that all have those close connections, and it was just very sad to see that someone could do something like that to someone with a family,” freshman Lucille Garcia said.

Freshmen were able to see cultural artifacts from the Holocaust up close and learn their continued significance in the lives of survivors. Freshmen also got to see firsthand the differences between society during World War 2 and society today. Freshman Dominic Tabacchi said the most memorable part of the trip was “seeing everything that was from, like, 1950 and in there, and seeing it now and how different it is.”

The experience of being able to explore the atrocities committed during World War 2 and learning about their continued relevance contributed to many freshmen’s understanding of the dark sides of history that are sometimes overlooked in schools. Many freshmen enjoyed the trip overall and were grateful for the educational experience.