Arlington School Children Face Canceled Field Trip If Federal Government Shuts Down

Thousands of school groups pass through the Natural History Museum every year in Washington. But a group of kindergarten, first and second graders from Abingdon Elementary in Arlington won't be among of them if the federal government shuts down on Monday.

The school group planned to take the field trip to the museum on Tuesday, said Kelly Costello, who teaches kindergartners and first graders with autism.

"I think they would have had a great time," Costello said. "Just being out in the community and having an opportunity to generalize their skills to environments outside the school...I really was excited to give my kids the opportunity to go into D.C. and experience the mall and the museum and different things."

Congressional lawmakers have until Friday evening to reach a compromise over the federal deficit ceiling. If no agreement is reached, some 800,000 federal employees, including much of the Smithsonian Institution's staff, will be furloughed starting Saturday.

According to the Smithsonian Institution's website, 30 million visitors pass through the museums each year. More than 1.1 million have visited the Natural History Musuem since January, alone.

Linda St. Thomas, a spokeswoman for the Smithsonian Institution, said the museums and the National Zoo will be closed indefinitely starting Saturday if the government shuts down.

"We hope it doesn’t happen or, if it does, it won’t last long," St. Thomas said.

Costello expressed frustration that the impasse between parties on the Hill will affect more than just government workers.

"I feel like there should be more compromise," she said. "I know that’s hard to come to."

Arlington County Board Chairman Chris Zimmerman agreed that the potential shutdown will not be good for Arlington County in the long run.

"It's making the federal government inefficient and in the long term that can have an impact on our region," Zimmerman said on Friday afternoon. "I have more anxiety over what the compromise will be in the end. This anti-government mania...has very negative implications on the capital region and our nation, as a whole."