Public invited to view, vote for student essays at Sikeston Depot

Dr. Larry Bohannon secures an entry as he prepares the display of essays written by Sikeston fourth graders Thursday, March 16, 2023, at the Sikeston Depot Museum. Members of the public are invited to view the essays and vote for their favorite one now through April 5. (Leonna Heuring/Standard Democrat)

SIKESTON — After COVID-19 halted the Sikeston Depot Museum’s annual, interactive history program for local fourth graders, organizers have found a new way to reach and educate the students.

Dr. Larry Bohannon, professor of elementary, early and special education at Southeast Missouri State University, has assisted with the program for several years and wrote the Missouri Humanities Council grant to create an educational video, lesson plan and essay contest for students.

“When COVID hit, schools were not able to come to the Depot,” said Bohannon, who is also a former administrator for Sikeston R-6 School District.

Bohannon said he decided to write the grant to develop a new method for the Depot to connect the community with the schools.

“We added a film that details everything about the Depot and about the history of Sikeston and John Sikes establishing Sikeston,” Bohannon said. “I took it to the schools and asked them to show the video to their students. I gave them a lesson plan and a timeline, and they were given a prompt and rubric to score the essays.”

As part of the lesson, students were given the assignment to write an essay on the topic, “If John Sikes were to come back today, which two places would you take him and why?”

The top essay from each participating class was chosen to be displayed at the Depot, Bohannon said, adding there are 13 essays available for viewing.

Voting began March 22 and will end April 5. Winners will be announced April 7.

“What we’ve done is put their papers up (at the Depot) with a number and are asking the public to come in and vote for the one they wish to be their choice,” Bohannon said. “The school that has the one with the most votes will get $100 for that classroom, and the top three students will be recognized with a small, monetary prize, Bohannon said.

Prior to COVID-19, the Sikeston Depot Museum for several years offered its interactive history program for every fourth grade class in Sikeston public and private schools to witness during a field trip to the museum. During the trip, they learned about Missouri and Sikeston history as interactive visual aids portrayed by Sikeston residents.

The goal with the interactive history program has always been to receive exposure for the Depot, Bohannon said.

“We don’t want anyone to graduate Sikeston High School without seeing the Depot,” Bohannon said. “When people get connected at a young age, we hope they fall in love with it and then they might sustain it.”

The Depot Museum is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday.