Idaho Falls PACE Students Recreate Ellis Island

Hundreds of people in Idaho Falls got to experience the historic Ellis Island as an immigrant on Tuesday night, thanks to some gifted and talented students.

Idaho Falls School District 91’s Program for Academic and Creative Education, or PACE, turned Sunnyside Elementary into a mock-up of America’s most famous immigration station.

After studying the subject all year, the program’s 200 students put on the open house.

Some came in costume with their parents to assume a foreign identity. Others ran background and health checks, just like the real Ellis Island.

In the end, some were chosen to take the loyalty oath, while others were deported or made their case at the appeals table.

“It’s kind of sad because lots went home, but happy because lots came here and are still living here,” said Katy Turner, a PACE student.

“You get the experience and how they felt,” said Dilynn Uhach, a PACE student.

Uhach said she liked the simulation more than reading it out of a book, but Turner thought the whole process was a little strange.