CAMILLUS, N.Y. -- For a magical 2 hours and 7 minutes Wednesday, a suburban theater transformed into a classroom for 140 girls from the city.

The occasion was a special showing of the movie "Hidden Figures," which chronicles the little-told stories of three African-American women who worked as "computers" -- mathematicians and engineers -- for NASA in the 1960s.

Technology teacher Joe Dottolo came up with the idea for the field trip. He secured funding from two local companies.

Principal Gene Jones was quick to support the trip. Jones said he saw the movie as a way to expose students to the world outside the school: both the world of the movie, and the world 15 minutes down Interstate 690 in Camillus, where the girls could enjoy the comforts of a lavish theater.

Wednesday first-thing in the morning, school buses whisked 140 bleary-eyed girls from West Lafayette Avenue to Movie Tavern in the suburb of Camillus.

Here's what their teachers were hoping they learned from the outing (spoilers ahead):

They can do anything

Dottolo's teaching philosophy is to show his students the world of opportunity that's available to them.

When he heard about "Hidden Figures", he knew he wanted to take his students to show them they too can "shoot for the stars," he said.

With a little over 80 percent of the Danforth student population being African-American, he noted that the movie could show his black female students how black women have overcome adversity to achieve greatness in science and math careers.

That was part of the reason why Danforth officials brought NASA astronaut Jeannette Epps to the school last year.

Epps, a Danforth student herself, will be the first African-American to join the crew of the International Space Station when she launches in May 2018.

"If you don't think that's achievable, it is," he told the students about traveling to space. "A woman from your neighborhood is going to space next year."

They're special

For at least one day, the girls at Danforth Middle School got to feel like queens.

As they filed out of the building and onto buses, their male peers shouted, "You get to go the movies?" and teachers chimed in, " I want to go!"

Once in the theater, they got what Principal Jones deemed "first-class treatment."

The girls immediately reclined in their leather seats and delighted in the personalized, table service that Movie Tavern provides.

"It's so nice to see them relax and kick back," Jones said.

An announcement that the students would be treated to unlimited popcorn and drinks was met with enthusiastic high-fives.

Seventh graders Jahsenda Tull and Angela Rivera reclined in their seats and rejoiced in their day at the movies.

"This theater is wonderful!" Jahsenda proclaimed as she waited for the movie to start. She said Danforth was about to start its mid-term testing, so the field trip was a welcome break from the classroom.

The community cares about them

The movie opens on a young Katherine Johnson doing complex mathematics in her head.

She's in the sixth grade in the first scene, the same age as many of the girls who filled the theater.

The camera pans to school administrators talking to Katherine's parents. They tell the couple that the teachers took up a collection to send Katherine to the state's only "colored" school for gifted students.

Like Katherine, the girls from Danforth get support from their teachers and community.

The trip wouldn't have happened without Dottolo's support, or funding from community partners.

O'Brien & Gere gave $2,000 to the school to cover the cost of tickets and transportation. AXA pitched in another $1,000 to help with costs and get the kids popcorn.

Movie Tavern offered discounted tickets and opened up early for the special morning showing.

They can overcome adversity

Fast-forward more than 85 years, and the 140 girls from Danforth Middle School giggle at the word "colored."

This generation has never experienced the kind of state-sanctioned segregation the heroines of "Hidden Figures" faced, but they do deal with racism and discrimination.

Seventh graders Elicyah Brandon and Camia Duncan said their peers can be mean, sexist and racist.

Outside the theater, Elicyah says she was frustrated, even furious, at the beginning of the movie when Katherine Johnson is told she has to use a certain bathroom.

The scene that sticks with Elicyah most is when Johnson is fed up, and finally stands up for herself. The powerful scene silenced extraneous giggles and chatter among girls in the theater.

"She was very confident in herself. ... [I liked] when she told the boys it wasn't right," Elicyah said.

Education knows no bounds



Danforth teachers and administrators described the movie as more than just a simple field trip, but a way to connect school with life outside.

A school labeled "struggling" that once had a reputation for violence, Danforth is now focused on building a positive culture, said Vice Principal Jerome Watts.

Stepping outside the building is a great way to motivate the girls to be polite, respectful and behave like adults -- and show that to the public, Watts said.

He said he hopes the girls and their teachers can now make connections between the trip and school.

During a short assembly in the school's auditorium before the students loaded onto buses, Watts challenged the girls to come back with knowledge about the people who have blazed a path for them to follow -- and with ideas about what their futures could hold.

While no girl rushed out of the theater declaring she would become a NASA engineer, many left with that gleam in their eyes that only the big screen can inspire.

"It's that atmosphere," Watts said.

Going forward

Technology teacher Ben Murray had some ideas about how he would carry the magic of the movies to his classroom.

Murray said he's starting a unit on careers in engineering. The movie, and the stories of Katherine Johnson, Mary Jackson and Dorothy Vaughan, give him a great jumping-off point.

"It's so important for, especially, women to see such high achievements in the STEM fields that they can directly relate to -- to see what an impact they can have in the world."

Reporter Julie McMahon covers Syracuse University and Syracuse city schools. She can be reached anytime: Email | Twitter | 315-412-1992