Middle School Girls Watch Solar Eclipse Reach Totality in Jonesboro, Arkansas

More than 200 middle school students traveled with Hutchison to witness the Great North American Eclipse reach totality.
Hutchison middle school girls had a “totality” amazing time seeing the total solar eclipse at Rolling Oaks Farm in Jonesboro, Arkansas.  “It has been a dream of mine since I saw my first total eclipse in 2017. It was a wonderful experience for me, and one of the highlights of my teaching career,” middle school science teacher Donna Budynas said.

As they awaited the spectacle of the total solar eclipse, each grade participated in activity rotations. Girls watched a live broadcast as the eclipse happened across North America, and they got creative as they completed eclipse-related writing and art assignments. Since they were on a farm, the girls also enjoyed a hayride across the property.

Starting about an hour before the eclipse reached totality in Jonesboro, girls put on their special Hutchison eclipse glasses and made scientific observations until the big moment. When the eclipse reached totality, there were cheers from the entire middle school.

Watch to see some of our girls reflections' on the experience of a lifetime:


Here is what some of our girls said about the memorable day:
  • “I saw a big sunset, and I thought it was cool. After I took my glasses off and saw that the sun was covered, I could see a red spot coming down. I just loved it. It was cool to feel the darkness even though it was almost 2 in the afternoon.” - Nancy Rie Adams ’30
  • “I thought it was really cool to see how much it changed our surroundings. It went from being a bright sunny day to dusk.” - Vivian Atkinson ’29
  • “It was amazing. The diamond ring was the coolest part.” - Katherine Pace ’30
  • “I thought it was very pretty and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. It was a great bonding experience for the whole middle school.” - Caitlyn Sharpe ’28
  • “I’ve seen a lot of cool things in my life, but this was life-changing. This was ‘totality’ cool!” - Emma Iskiwitz ’28
  • “It was beautiful. A memory I will always cherish.” - Vera Berryhill ’30
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Memphis, Tennessee 38119
Phone: (901) 761-2220

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Hutchison is the leading private girls school in Memphis for ages 2 years old through twelfth grade.