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Chickamauga & Chattanooga National Military Park
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Exploring Hometown History at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park 

Connecting Communities: Exploring History and Heritage at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park

National parks are America’s largest living classrooms. At Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park (CHCHNMP), teachers, students and their families are leaning into the history of their community, and how the area they call home played into the history of our nation.  

With support from the National Park Foundation’s Open OutDoors for Kids program and donors like Columbia Sportswear, CHCHNMP engaged close to 8,000 elementary school students last year in their field trip program, “Exploring Chattanooga's History Through the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park.” Incorporating the history of the park and its role in the Civil War, the project also emphasizes themes like women’s history, indigenous perspectives, and inclusive narratives.  

Open OutDoors for Kids program participants with a park ranger (NPS)

But visiting CHCHNMP in-person is not possible for each of the 55,000+ students in the surrounding communities. To make park experiences more accessible, CHCHNMP also offers virtual field trips for students to each of its six park sites, allowing not only the students but their entire household to visit the park online.

Open OutDoors for Kids program at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park  (NPS)

To keep students engaged out of school time, CHCHNMP has also created community partnerships with libraries, museums, and local media outlets to offer educational experiences led by park staff. Parks are meant to be a place of wonder and education, but they are also a place for human connection. While there are always opportunities for the park to offer experiences for students, the goal is to engage the whole family, providing opportunities for everyone to connect with the rich history of the Chattanooga community. From field trips to summer camps, scavenger hunts to immersive virtual reality experiences, CHCHNMP is working to engage their entire community through meaningful interactions in and outside the park.  

Since 2019, Columbia Sportswear has helped students across the country and their families connect with parks through Open OutDoors for Kids, helping to create the next generation of park stewards.

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