WASHINGTON (Gray DC) – An Ohio congressman is personally leading Capitol tours for students whose class trips were canceled by the government shutdown.
Rep. Bob Latta (R-Ohio) is spending part of his week giving tours to middle school students who had planned their visits months before Congress reached an impasse that closed the Capitol building to public tours.
“So they get here and what happens? They’re closed up. Everything, you know, they look around, there’s nothing to do. And so I think it’s really incumbent upon me to be here to give them tours of the Capitol,” Rep. Latta said.
The shutdown canceled all official Capitol tours, leaving students who had been planning and fundraising for their trips with nowhere to go.
Jessica Judy, a teacher at Fort Recovery Middle School, which is located in Latta’s district, said the cancellation was disappointing for her students.
“It definitely was frustrating and disappointing for our students,” Judy said. “The students last fall actually did some fundraising for their trip, to prepare and paying for the trip.”
Students said they were grateful to have their representative show them around for a trip they had been looking forward to.
“Oh I was super excited. Made like made me want to go the trip ten times more,” said Lauren Hart, a Fort Recovery Middle School student.
Latta said he plans to host more tours so other students don’t miss out on their planned visits.
“It’s a learning process and it’s not just that learning process, it’s what they’ll glean and hopefully remember as they, as they grow older, and become voting age,” Latta said.
Copyright 2025 Gray DC. All rights reserved.
