HARRISBURG, Pa. — It has been 24 years since nearly 3,000 lives were lost in the September 11 terror attacks, and schools across Central Pennsylvania are reflecting on the tragedy in different ways.
State Sen. Kristin Phillips-Hill (R-York) said Act 25 of 2024 aims to make the anniversary a “teachable lesson.” The law requires Pennsylvania schools to observe a moment of silence on 9/11 each year.
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However, learning about the attacks varies widely. “There were some schools that were teaching students about that fateful day — what led up to it, the aftermath — but there were many schools across the Commonwealth that weren’t,” Phillips-Hill said.
Residents shared their experiences. Kendall Mackanick of Shippensburg said, “We learned about it briefly, but I don’t think there was a ton of emphasis on it.” Kelsey Bailey added, “I think there needs to be some kind of correlation of learning about it.”
The law tasked the Pennsylvania Department of Education with creating a free curriculum for teachers. While the resources are available this year, educators are not required to use them or teach 9/11 history at all.
“As history has evolved, there were a lot of schools that hadn’t made those changes, and it’s expensive to redo your curriculum to purchase those materials,” Phillips-Hill noted.
Some residents voiced concern about student engagement. James Baxter of Harrisburg said, “Maybe they should [teach it] if we can come back together as a country, but right now it’s hard because we are not participating together.” Mackanick added, “Kids anymore are insensitive to it because they don’t really care to learn about it, and because of that, a lot of teachers may feel like they’re wasting their time.”
The online resource covers the events of 9/11, the historical context of terrorism, the American and global recovery, and allows discussions on the controversies that followed.
“I would certainly hope that, as with many other difficult topics, educators would be able to provide this knowledge to students in an unbiased, impartial way,” Phillips-Hill said. Gary Brennan, a Harrisburg resident, said, “Why hide the truth? I don’t see the purpose in that.”
The Department of Education has not yet provided data on how many schools currently do not teach 9/11 history. Senator Phillips-Hill expects more schools to incorporate the topic now that the new resources are available.
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