Nebraska teacher, student preparing for Philadelphia event celebrating founding documents

A teacher and student from Loup City are gearing up for a history trip to Philadelphia. While exploring the landmarks of the city, the pair will also sign a declaration with people from across the country inspired by the one signed at the Continental Congress in 1776.

Kim Henry, who teaches American history, geography and reading at Loup City Public Schools, and Morgan Rademacher, a junior, were one of 28 pairs selected to participate in the Young People’s Continental Congress in July. National History Day, a nonprofit focused on improving history education, partnered with Carpenters’ Hall, home of the first Continental Congress, for the event.

Henry and Rademacher said they were ecstatic when they found out their application was successful.

“National History Day gives so many opportunities, and this is just another one I get to bring to a student, and another one I get to share geeking out over history,” Henry said.

Henry is the National History Day sponsor for her school, helping prepare students for the competition that occurs throughout the spring. She also took three students last year to the Nebraska Veterans Home Cemetery as part of the Silent Heroes program, which honors those who served in the Korean War. Henry also leads an annual trip with her husband to Washington, D.C.

“When we get to share something historical with our students, we hope we're opening up inspiration and wanting them to get to travel and step into the places where history was made,” Henry said.

Henry and Rademacher will spend the next few months studying various readings and taking part in webinars to learn more about the history they will see in person. Henry said the webinars will include conversations with historians, and one will include a co-director of the Ken Burns “The American Revolution” film.

Rademacher said she is most excited to explore museums and see the Liberty Bell.

“Being able to go on these types of trips is also very educational, and it has given me a passion towards history, in a way,” Rademacher said. “It's very important to me.”

Rademacher’s passion for history has grown because of National History Day. She even started preparing for this year’s competition last summer.

“I was watching Tiktok — not gonna lie — and a movie clip came up, and it was of Radium Girls, the movie,” Rademacher said. “I was like, ‘Whoa, this would be cool.’ Then my friend was like, ‘You know what? That would be cool for an NHD topic.’ We're like, ‘Oh my goodness,’ so we called Miss Henry.”

The Radium Girls were factory workers around the 1920s and 1930s who dealt with radium poisoning from painting numbers on watches. In the aftermath, they fought for more safety in the workplace. Rademacher has qualified for nationals three times before.

The pair will also take part in creating their own declaration with the other teacher-student groups based on their aspirations for America.

“There is going to be a lot of different opinions, but we have to back it up with evidence,” Henry said. “That's all what NHD is, is that you form an opinion and you back it up with evidence.”

Henry said it’s an honor to represent Nebraska in this way, especially with this year being the 250th celebration of the United States.

“It's the 250th birthday of America, and what a better way to spend it than a week in July where the Declaration of Independence was discussed and affirmed,” Henry said. “You can't spend a better time or a better place than that, so we're kind of excited about it. We were trying not to geek out too much.”