The Experience
What to Expect
Research
Follow a soldier from your hometown through combat and write their biography with primary sources from the National Archives
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Explore
Walk the beaches of Normandy, the fortifications of the Atlantic Wall, and the streets of Paris
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Present
Give your soldier's eulogy at the American cemetery in France and publish your paper in the cemetery's archives
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Study
Visit the George Washington University Campus to participate in activities ranging from a visit to Arlington National Cemetery, to lectures by GW Professors, to research at the National Archives at College Park, MD
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Walk the Path of Overlord Like Never Before
The Albert H. Small Normandy Institute will take fifteen student-teacher teams on the learning experience of a lifetime. The Institute is an intensive program to learn about the D-Day Campaign of 1944 and the sacrifices made by young Americans to defeat tyranny.
Members of the Institute will begin studying World War II and the Normandy Campaign in January by reading materials provided by the Institute and participating in online discussions of those materials supervised by Institute staff from The George Washington University. From late June to early July 2022, Institute members will travel to the campus of The George Washington University in Washington, D.C., for a series of lectures and activities to deepen their understanding of elements of the conflict. Finally, the students and teachers will participate in a “staff-ride” (army-speak for a participatory educational tour led by GWU professors) of many of the sites that played a role in the Normandy Campaign in France. Each student will be called upon to present a briefing concerning some element of the campaign at the appropriate site. For instance, a student giving a presentation on the Atlantic Wall will give their presentation inside one of the surviving German bunkers at Longues-Sur-Mer!
As a capstone to the Institute, each team will select a member of the United States Armed Forces who participated in the Normandy Campaign and gave his or her life in the effort to liberate France, to prevent the spread of the fascist tyranny imposed by Nazi Germany, and to preserve our liberty. Each team will then, with assistance from the Institute staff, learn about that service member’s life and write a biography of that soldier. The culmination of our Staff Ride will be an opportunity for the student member of each team to present a eulogy for their hometown hero while standing by his graveside in the Normandy American Cemetery at Colleville-Sur-Mer.
The Institute will pay for all course materials, including assigned professional readings, meals and lodging (double occupancy) on the GW Campus and in France, and travel in the D.C. area and to and within France (including museum entry fees). The Institute will reimburse the student and teacher members for up to $300 of their cost of traveling to Washington D.C. Any other travel costs not listed (e.g., travel insurance, passport, etc.) are the responsibility of the individual members. The Institute is conducted thanks to the insight and generous contributions of Mr. Albert H. Small.
The purpose of the Albert H. Small Normandy Institute is to preserve and disseminate to young people and future generations the truth that “Freedom is not free,” but requires sacrifice. By teaching young people about D-Day and helping educators to teach about it, the Institute hopes to convey Mr. Small’s message as widely as possible.
After a welcoming dinner at GW, the members of the Institute will participate in extensive discussions, lectures, and visits to historic sites in Washington. We will visit Arlington National Cemetery, the World War II Memorial, the National Archives, the National Holocaust Memorial Museum (where we hope will include a conversation with a survivor of the concentration camps,) and other sites. For the duration of all travel, students will room (double occupancy) with other students and teachers with other teachers. Then we will fly to France for our staff ride. We will visit Omaha and Utah Beaches, Pointe du Hoc, the British and Canadian Beaches, and many other key sites. The trip will conclude with a visit to sites in Paris that played an important role in the Resistance and the liberation of Paris.
After they return home, each student and each teacher team member will present, in their own community, three talks about their soldier, his sacrifice, and lessons of the Institute.
The biography prepared by each team of members will be deposited in the Archive of the Normandy American Cemetery.
Students must be either a rising junior or a rising senior during the summer of their Institute Class. Students and teachers apply as a single team. Teachers can be high school or middle school teachers, and do not necessarily need to be history teachers to apply. The Institute is a non-smoking, tobacco-free event and all participants must be able to stand for an hour and to walk significant distances (up to two miles) over sandy, rocky, and hilly terrain in varying weather conditions. Due to the constraints of our travel situation, it is not possible for family members to accompany the group.
Thank you for your interest, and we look forward to working with you!
How to Apply
The Albert H. Small Normandy Institute will be accepting applications again for the Class of 2023 later in the year. Stay tune for more information!
Covid-19 Policy
Your safety is of the utmost importance to us. The Institute will be monitoring and applying CDC recommendations as well as those of the George Washington University. For more information, please consult the GW Covid-19 policy here.
Important Documents
Reading Materials and Travel Plans
While much of the program is done via books and online discussion, the final part of the trip will take place both in Washington D.C. and in France itself, all paid for by the Institute. Members will be greeted in DC with various activities and lectures, including research at the National Archives on their soldiers, a tour of the Holocaust Museum, and various other sites within the capital.
From DC, the group will then travel to Paris, and from there, to Normandy itself. This trip will include all of the major sites of the Normandy Campaign, including Omaha Beach, Pegasus Bridge, the remaining German defenses, a variety of museums in the area, and finally, Colleville-sur-Mer. After touring Normandy, the group will return to Paris to see a variety of sites, including sites important to the French Resistance during the liberation of Paris.
For a more detailed itinerary, please click the file under Trip Itineraries and Meeting Plans.
From DC, the group will then travel to Paris, and from there, to Normandy itself. This trip will include all of the major sites of the Normandy Campaign, including Omaha Beach, Pegasus Bridge, the remaining German defenses, a variety of museums in the area, and finally, Colleville-sur-Mer. After touring Normandy, the group will return to Paris to see a variety of sites, including sites important to the French Resistance during the liberation of Paris.
For a more detailed itinerary, please click the file under Trip Itineraries and Meeting Plans.
Reading Materials
This document will provide you with a list of books that you will read as part of this course. All books will be provided by the Institute.
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Trip Itineraries and Meeting Plans
This document will provide you with an itinerary of the Washington D.C. activities as well as travel in France. Please be aware that this interary is subject to change.
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