Just outside of Fayetteville is a small town with just under 2,300 people called Lincoln, but in this small town, big things are happening thanks to the work of EAST students at Lincoln Middle School.

For years, Lincoln Middle School has worked with their local government and organizations around the town to solve problems and offer new value to a community without the resources to take on many big ideas, learning what it’s like to work with real-world clients and partners while becoming more engaged with the town the students call home.

Justin Hopper, the Chief of Staff for the City of Lincoln, began his role last September and quickly met with the EAST program to discuss what the students could help the city accomplish with their help.

“[EAST facilitator] Mr. Huffmaster brought his students in to see what they could accomplish with us and they presented projects they’ve already done,” Hopper said. “I had a need but not the resources, but they have the resources so it is a great partnership.”

Hopper’s need was to create a website with 360-degree virtual tours of community buildings in the city which can be rented out, providing the government with additional revenue. Following their initial meeting, students were able to finish their first virtual tour in just three weeks.

“What we would do is we would set up a tripod with a GoPro [camera] on it and we’d choose someone to press the button before we all ran into another hallway or something to hide,” said Kennadie Cuzick, an eighth grader from Lincoln Middle School. “One of us did happen to get into one of the photos, so I used Affinity Designer to edit the photo and remove him.”

The virtual tours are not the only project students are working on for the city, as another team is creating an audio tour of Lincoln’s historic downtown, with QR codes that lead to the audio files and pictures of what parts of the city looked like several decades ago. Hopper says he’s seen the students’ excitement in discovering the history of their hometown, creating a bond which will hopefully last a lifetime.

“Being in that class and seeing the students get so excited to find out why Lincoln is the way it is, that can develop a passion for living here and wanting to make Lincoln a better place,” Hopper said. “When your young people and the city are working together like this, it can really grow and enhance the community.”

With EAST Conference just a month away, Hopper mentioned how important of an opportunity the event is as well as he believes the EAST students carry the responsibility of representing their small town on a statewide level.

“They may not can feel the weight of that,” Hopper said. “But when they present a huge project like making a braille menu for a local diner on a state level and are able to bring back something home to Lincoln, we support them and cheer them on any chance we get.”