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Today we remember the six D.C. students and teachers who were killed on 9/11 while on a plane for a field trip.
23 years ago, Leckie Elementary School teacher Hilda Taylor and student Bernard Brown, Bertie Backus Middle School teacher Sara Clark and student Asia Cottom, and Ketcham Elementary School teacher James Debeuneure and student Rodney Dickens were all chosen for a trip to California to study ecology alongside National Geographic Society researchers, per Fox 5 DC.
Their plane, Flight 77, was hijacked less than 35 minutes into the field trip. At around 9:37 a.m., the plane hit the Pentagon, killing all passengers
The D.C. students and teachers were among roughly 3,000 people who were killed during terrorist attacks that were carried out on September 11th.
Keep scrolling to find out more about the D.C. victims.
Hilda Taylor
Taylor was a veteran teacher to sixth-grade students at Leckie Elementary School. As a Sierra Leone native, Taylor, who was a mother and grandmother, immigrated to the U.S. to create a better life for her family.
Bernard Brown
Brown, one of three 11-year-old children who were killed in the 9/11 attacks, was described as a student who kept teachers on their toes at Leckie Elementary School. The student was progressing in his academic work, which is said to be one of the reasons he was chosen for the field trip. A lover of basketball, Brown aspired to play professionally one day.
Sara Clark
Clark, a sixth-grade teacher at Backus Middle School, started her career in teaching at D.C. Public Schools in 1965. At the time of the terrorist attacks, Clark was reportedly engaged to be married and was a mother of two.
Asia Cottom
Cottom, 11, was newly enrolled at Backus Middle School, where her father was a coach and classroom aide. Teachers said Asia was kindhearted and always eager to help her fellow peers.
James Debeuneure
Debeuneure, a father of three, was a fifth-grade teacher at Ketcham Elementary School. He was described as a person who would always arrive early and leave late.
Rodney Dickens
11-year-old Dickens was an honor roll student at Ketcham Elementary School. He was known as a role model to his two younger brothers and loved to watch professional wrestling.
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