Summer at CYC: learning that stays with you
Summer creates opportunities that don’t always fit within the school year. It offers time to explore new places, ask bigger questions, and experience learning in ways that extend beyond the classroom.
For a group of high school students from CYC, that opportunity began with an eight-day journey through the American South.
In partnership with the Sojourn Project, students traveled across five states, visiting churches, museums, memorials, neighborhoods, and historic landmarks connected to the Civil Rights Movement. Along the way, they stood in places they had previously encountered only through textbooks and documentaries, meeting community members whose stories helped bring history into sharper focus.
Rather than studying history from a distance, students experienced it where it happened.
Throughout the trip, classrooms gave way to conversations, historical sites became places for reflection, and questions often mattered more than answers. Walking across the Edmund Pettus Bridge, visiting the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, and gathering inside churches that served as organizing spaces during the Civil Rights Movement gave students the chance to connect historical events with the people who lived them.
“I learned things that aren’t usually taught in school,” one student reflected. “Being there made everything feel more real.”
For another student, the journey reshaped how they understood history itself.
“I realized history isn’t just about famous people,” they shared. “It’s also about everyday people who decided to stand up for what they believed in.”
Those moments invited students to think beyond dates and timelines. They began asking different questions about courage, community, and what ordinary people are capable of when they come together around a shared purpose.
This year, the experience also expanded in a new direction.
For the first time, students explored Chinese American history in the South through a visit to the Mississippi Delta Chinese Heritage Museum. There, they learned about immigrant families who built businesses, raised children, and navigated discrimination while living within the realities of the Jim Crow South.
For many participants, it was the first time they had encountered this chapter of American history.
The visit created an opportunity for students to see their own cultural histories reflected within the broader American story. Rather than viewing the Civil Rights Movement and Chinese American history as separate narratives, they began to understand how different communities have experienced exclusion, resilience, and belonging in interconnected ways.
One student reflected that the experience reminded them every community has stories worth remembering, even when those stories are not widely taught.
“Reading about history is important, but standing in the places where it happened changes how young people connect with it,” Kelly Luo, CYC Victim Advocate, shared. “This year, including Chinese American history gave many of our students an opportunity to see themselves reflected in a story they hadn’t realized they were part of. It reminded them that history is made up of many voices, and every community has contributed to shaping where we are today.”
The learning continued long after students left each historic site.
Participants came from different schools and CYC programs, many meeting for the first time before boarding the plane. Over the course of the week, conversations on bus rides, shared meals, and evening reflections became just as meaningful as the places they visited. Students challenged one another’s perspectives, processed difficult moments together, and built friendships grounded in curiosity and mutual respect.
By the end of the trip, many described returning home with a broader understanding of both history and themselves.
“I’ll carry what I learned with me,” one student wrote. “It changed the way I think about history, my community, and the role I can play in making a difference.”
That reflection speaks to what makes summer experiences like this unique.
At CYC, summer is not simply a break from school. It is a season for exploration, where young people have the opportunity to encounter new ideas, develop meaningful relationships, and discover connections that are difficult to create within the rhythm of everyday classrooms.
Through experiences like the Sojourn Project, students return home with more than memories. They bring back new perspectives, deeper questions, and a greater understanding of the communities they are part of and the role they can play in shaping them.
We are grateful to the Sojourn Project for partnering with CYC to make this experience possible and for creating opportunities that encourage young people to learn with curiosity, empathy, and an openness to perspectives beyond their own.
Summer at CYC looks different for every young person. Across the city and beyond, youth are exploring new interests, strengthening relationships, and discovering possibilities that extend well beyond the classroom.
This is the first story in our Summer at CYC series. Subscribe to our newsletter to follow along as we share more stories from the season.