Occoquan Teacher Remembers 9/11

Occoquan resident James Phelps was in his fourth day teaching fifth grade at Raymond Elementary School in Washington, D.C., when the plane hit the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001. Phelps and the other teachers stayed with the children until it was time to evacuate, and Phelps was among the last to leave.

"I remember thinking at the time, 'I am a part of one of the greatest events that is ever going to happen to these children,'" Phelps said. "'Nothing will be the same now. How can it be?' My teaching career would be defined by that moment. And it has been. We've struggled to contextualize the event--to try to find a way to teach what hate is, and how you respond to it effectively."