Students and teachers at Miami R-1 School will soon enter a period in history that Missourians tend to hold dear.

The school, located in the town which sits on the bank of the Missouri River, recently received notification that it will be the recipient of a $500 Lewis and Clark Educational Activities Grant provided through the Friends of the Missouri State Archives. Funded by the Missouri Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Commission, the program is designed to encourage the study of the Lewis and Clark expedition up the Missouri River and the role Missouri played in the westward expansion of the United States.

Peggy Page, the school’s librarian and grant coordinator, said she sent in an application for the grant last fall containing some project ideas she thought would benefit the school.

“Because the exploration is a real part of our state and nation’s heritage and we’re right on the Missouri River, we want our students to better under-stand and relive the journey Le-wis and Clark took as they opened up the West,” Page said.

One of 40 schools submitting applications for a total of $18,000 in grant money, Miami’s plan is to provide a “History To Go” presentation made possible by the Missouri Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Commission and a drama called “Footsteps West: Lewis and Clark’s Corps of Discovery,” which will be offered by the Missouri Historical Society in St. Louis.

Noting the school has not obtained a grant such as this in many years, Principal Judy Teufel said the drama will help students appreciate Missouri’s heritage.

“Next year is the big celebration, the bicentennial of their journey, and hopefully this will give students a background of knowledge so the celebration activities will mean more to them,” Teufel said.

The grant will cover the cost of the one-hour presentation, which has not yet been scheduled on the school’s calendar, but the school will also be offering a teacher’s workshop and group presentations.

Teufel described the half-day workshop as a time for teachers to view artifacts from the Lewis and Clark expedition and learn about methods and resources that can be used for classroom teaching. The workshop will take place March 20 at the school.

Presenter Richard Gaffney will also visit the school, at a date to be announced, to portray Georgés Pierre Drouillard, Lewis and Clark’s hired hunter and interpreter.

The Friends of the Missouri State Archives will begin awarding a second cycle of grants according to applications received by March 15. Funds from the grants are awarded in amounts of up to $500.

“The State Archives are not only interested in preserving our past but in keeping it alive and vital for succeeding generations,” said Bob Priddy, president of Friends of the Missouri State Archives. “This is an outstanding example of how the archives, our Friends group and educators throughout Missouri can join together in unique ways to make a 200-year-old event meaningful and personal today.”