David J. Sencer CDC Museum Home

Student Field Trip Experience

Student visitors take in the Global Symphony while being welcomed by David J. Sencer CDC Museum director, Judy Gantt.

Length of visit: Approximately 2 hours
Group Size: 10-40 (including chaperones)

What to Expect

The large school group field trip experience is available for groups of 10-40 seventh-twelfth graders. During the field trip, students will learn about CDC’s history, CDC’s current work in preventing disease and promoting health, and detailed information about various infectious diseases. Upon arrival to the David J. Sencer CDC Museum, the group will be greeted and oriented to CDC on the Global Symphony platform. The Global Symphony is a media installation featuring four, three–minute stories that describe in depth CDC′s contributions to the elimination of polio, the investigation of Legionnaire′s disease, the battle to stem the rise of obesity in the United States, and the study of how humans, animals, and the environment interact in the spread of Ebola. Following the orientation, students will be divided into two smaller groups. One group will tour the exhibit area while the other group watches a video about CDC. Approximately 40 minutes later the groups will trade places.

Tours include the current temporary exhibit and CDC Museum’s permanent History of CDC exhibit. For information on the current temporary exhibit, click here. Through the context of the history of CDC exhibit, students will learn about infectious and chronic diseases studied at CDC, the bacteria, viruses and risk behaviors that cause diseases, and prevention methods like immunization and healthy lifestyles.

Students MD Stekis,Berkmar High School and Maheen Shermohammed, Brookwood High School, try on the Biosafety Level 4 lab suits.

Following the guided tour and video presentation, students will have the opportunity to try on a Biosafety Level 4 lab suit and explore the exhibit area independently.

Teacher Instructions. Additional information regarding parking and security will be sent via email in a field trip confirmation email.

Prior to Visit

Submit a reservation request. Your tour is not scheduled until you receive a confirmation email.
Submit a complete list of attendees’ names by fax (404-639-0834) or email to museum@cdc.gov.
Review museum behavior expectations [PDF 71KB] with students. Students not adhering to museum behavior guidelines will be asked to return to the waiting platform for the remainder of the tour.
Print and read the driving directions & parking instructions. Traffic can be heavy near the CDC campus, please plan accordingly.

During Visit

Please help museum staff by being an active chaperone! Help us model proper behavior by refraining from talking during the tours, using a cell phone or bringing food and beverages into the museum space.
Bring a camera. You may want to take pictures of your students as they try on BSL 4 suits! Please note that cameras are only allowed in the museum area; pictures may not be taken anywhere else on the CDC’s campus.