BRYAN, Texas (KBTX) – Since 2005, a group of students from Sam Houston State University have taken a trip to attend the presidential inauguration of the term.
Mike Yawn, a professor of political science at the university, leads the trip. He told KBTX the initial trip 20 years ago was an idea that came from a student.
“We took 25 students there and after being delayed by snow on return for 24 hours, I said, ‘I’m never doing that with that many students again,‘” recalled Yawn. “We’ve taken a smaller group, but it’s such a positive experience to see the democratic processes work.”
The weather played a factor again this year. Cold weather moved the ceremony inside.
“We had a very tight schedule that went across New York, Philadelphia, D.C., and Richmond, Virginia, and really tied together for some broad experiences. But we found out while we were in Philadelphia that the inauguration was going to be moved in, and about 300 or 400 would be able to see it. We weren’t one of those 300 or 400,” he revealed.
So, the group changed their plans and spent an extra day in Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love, and got to see more of where the United States began.
“These are the things that you learn about in textbooks and seeing pictures, but you never really think about when you’re going to see them in person,” shared student Olivia Discon. “We were on the same side of Independence Hall and where the Liberty Bell is, we got to see Congress Hall as well, which is where the first peaceful transfer of a presidency happened between, of course, George Washington and John Adams, and that was the day of the inauguration. So, it all just felt very real and powerful to be a part of.”
Discon has been proud to share her experiences with fellow students back at Sam Houston’s campus in Huntsville.
“We wrote a few articles for the local paper talking about our experiences and my family can’t get enough of me talking about it,” she said.
Yawn said he enjoys bringing the students to where the events took place, “It’s one thing to hear about it, to read about it, but it’s another to actually stand in the same spot as Thomas Jefferson or Benjamin Franklin or George Washington.”
He added, “We are training them to be citizens and be fully engaged. They will be our leaders and we want them to be.”
Copyright 2025 KBTX. All rights reserved.
