Northside High School students become curators for MRAP class project

The Museum of Aviation’s newest exhibit was brought to life with the help of four Northside High School seniors. Tim Campbell, Korey Cutlip, Alex Doyle and Jordan Pierce assisted Curator Mike Rowland and Collections Manager Bill Paul in creating a display on the Cougar Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicle. The exhibit officially opened May 6.

The seniors spent about three hours each week at the museum during the fall and spring semesters as part of the Professional Interest Exploration requirement of their humanities class. The program allows students to shadow professionals in the field, from the hospital to city posts, Northside humanities teacher Kim Stewart said.

This is the fifth year since 2010 that a group of students interested in museum curating has helped create a permanent exhibit at the Warner Robins facility, Stewart said. This year’s project and another are housed inside the Century of Flight building, and three are in the Eagle building. Rowland said these five exhibits focus on present-day Air Force subjects, since there were already many that focused on the past.

“The students wanted to come to the museum to experience what museum people do, but we felt that it was important for students to help tell a story that’s current,” Rowland said. “They’re getting museum stuff, but they’re also rubbing shoulders with Air Force people in their day-to-day missions.”

Rowland said Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected, or MRAP, vehicles have helped save the lives of American troops. With blast-resistant bodies, the armored trucks can withstand attacks from improvised explosive devices and land mines. The vehicle on display for the exhibit hit an explosive while in Afghanistan in January 2014. A wheel was blown off, but the truck kept the soldiers from being injured. The Museum of Aviation acquired it in August 2015, making it the only Air Force museum with an MRAP on display.

“Many of the systems in it are extremely rugged,” said Campbell, who is going to Marian Military Institute. “It can still drive to base with one wheel blown off. It’s designed to give soldiers an extremely good chance of getting back home.”

The students created data boards that explain the origins and design of the MRAP, and a display case commemorating the Office of Special Investigations that features a uniform and bullet-proof vest, Campbell and Pierce said.

Cutlip, who will attend the University of North Georgia, said they researched extensively and interviewed security specialists to get first-hand accounts. They learned how to tell a story through the exhibit and convey the importance of the history to the public, said Doyle, who has been accepted at Valdosta State. The students also gained experience in writing, editing, selecting photos and graphics and public speaking, Rowland said.

“I’m so proud of them. The work they’ve done has been phenomenal,” Stewart said. “One of the things the boys all mentioned was the professional aspect of it, the idea that they’re getting experience working with professionals in the real world. It’s an opportunity we are just so blessed to have.”

Campbell said his favorite part of the project was hearing the veterans’ stories, while Cutlip loved seeing the airmen at the grand opening and hearing how much the exhibit meant to them. Doyle said it was a unique experience and an opportunity that he’s glad he took advantage of.

“Through working on the MRAP, it really opened my eyes to the fact that there is a story behind each of the exhibits,” said Pierce, who plans to attend Middle Georgia State.

This story was originally published May 22, 2016 at 3:33 PM with the headline "Northside High School students become curators for MRAP class project."