During the 2000-2001 school year, John W. Bate Social Studies Teacher Jeff Gulle's 7th grade class made and buried a time capsule in front of the school. This school year, Gulle and the Danville Independent Schools maintenence crew unearthed the 25-year-old time capsule.

The 2000-2001 school year was Gulle's first year teaching at Bate and fourth year teaching overall. The 6th grade and 8th grade classes were welcome to contribute to the time capsule too, but it was mainly done by Gulle's class.

His class examined why it's important to preserve the past for future generations and how they could do it themselves. His class studied significant archaeological sites, such as King Tutankhamun’s tomb and the Pompeii ruins.

"The students were fascinated by the fact that artifacts survived from so long ago and could be seen in the modern day," Gulle said. "In class, we examined pictures and replicas of selected artifacts and discussed what each taught us about the people who lived long ago. This led to a discussion of what we could leave behind."

The students considered what items to include in their own time capsule. There were newspapers, a souvenir from the then-recent 2000 presidential election, photos of Bate and of Danville, items of clothing and accessories that were fashionable at the time, and more.

 

The class had to consider how to best package the time capsule, and they ultimately decided on plastic because it's waterproof.

"We opened the time capsule and found that most of the items did not survive the 25 years underground," Gulle said. "Despite our best efforts in 2001, over the years water did manage to penetrate every layer of the protective plastic that we used. As a result, most of the artifacts, including photos of Bate, newspapers, and students’ written messages were ruined. This is a disappointment, but it also gives us an opportunity to employ some of our Portrait of a Danville Learner skills. For example, we now have the chance to try again to solve the problems that accompany trying to preserve artifacts. And if we were to try again to do another time capsule, we could also make it a community-wide project."

Gulle said that over the years, numerous former students, some of whom are the parents of current students, remember the time capsule and have asked him about it.

"That, to me, is what teaching is all about," he said. "It was an experience that was meaningful, memorable, enjoyable, and educational."