Ever since I joined the newspaper staff, I’ve been given so many opportunities and met many great people. One person that I have been able to talk to a lot lately is officer Ashley Rose, one of the police officers working full time at SHS. I ran into Rose while I was at a basketball game in early December. He mentioned that there was going to be a field trip where students would be able to visit the FBI headquarters right here in Indianapolis. I was beyond excited. I couldn’t stop thinking about the trip from that point on. I’ve always pictured myself going into this field of work and I’ve admired the people that work in it, and after this experience it seemed less like a possibility and more like a reality. The men and women are known for their fidelity, bravery and integrity. That’s what FBI stands for, isn’t it?

Getting onto the minibus was quite nerve-racking, especially since guidance counselor Briana Underwood was not sure how to open the door. The ride there was smooth other than getting lost trying to find the bus fueling station. As we made our way to Castleton I became very shaky. This was mostly because we had to go through metal detectors and my boots had zippers on them, but also because this was the first time the headquarters has allowed students from SHS to visit. It was kind of a big deal.

The building looked very normal. I was honestly expecting something like the Pentagon, but it really just looked like a regular office building. Other than the barb-wired fence surrounding it, which kind of screamed, “FBI.” As we entered the building, Rose pushed the button on the wall and talked to the woman through the speaker. I assume he was just as nervous as I was. After making eye contact with the picture of president Donald Trump that was hanging on the wall, he referred to the woman as “sir.”

After waiting a few minutes, that felt like hours, we were met by our tour guide and she led us to a conference room. Once there, we were shown a video pretty much describing what it’s like to be part of the FBI. It reminded me of a documentary that I could find on Netflix. We were told that not everyone in the FBI is a special agent, which is the person that has an investigative role and works “on the streets” to help stop the bad guys. There are many people that play a role in the grand scheme of the FBI. After that, our group was able to ask questions. Pretty much every question was given a solid answer. She was quite helpful and did a great job of explaining what the FBI is all about. I’d say she was overall impressed with our group, because we asked more questions than any other group she has given tours to.

After the video and the Q and A, we began to walk around the headquarters. Although we couldn’t see much of the building, considering it is the FBI we were dealing with, it was all so interesting. We were able to see the work out room that the special agents use, the outside of the gun vault, and a wall that honors everyone that has passed away while in the line of duty.

Overall the experience was informative and fun I would love to do something like this again. I’m really glad I was able to get a sneak peek into the world of the FBI.