Day at the Capitol
A field trip to remember!
We’re Sorry! 2024 Day at the Capitol Registration Is Full.
2024 Day at The Capitol
An HEAV-sponsored event
Thursday, February 8, 2024
Date:
Thursday, February 8, 2024
Time
8:30 a.m. – Check-In and intro begins at 9.
Location:
Historic St. Johns Church
2401 E. Broad Street, Richmond Google map here.
Thank you to Jonathon Staddon of Lenspiration for this video!
HEAV members: $40/family, plus $10 for each non-family participant coming with you. (Grandparents are only $5 each.)
Non-members: $45/family, plus $10 for each non-family participant.. (Grandparents are $5 each.)
Members, be sure to log in to see the registration link.
Registration:
MEMBERS: Member-only registration is closed.
NON-MEMBERS: Closed.
*IMPORTANT: Because of limited seating, registration is likely to fill during member-only registration. Join HEAV today to claim a seat and get your discount!
Not a member, but want to get the discount?
Join HEAV today! You’ll get the member discount for this Day at the Capitol–plus discounts for the convention and other HEAV events! You’ll get free classes, resource discounts, teacher ID cards, and much, much more! Check out the member benefits here.
Check-In and Tickets
Rally at the Historic St. John’s Church (Check in and pick up event tickets.)
Parents and students will meet at the Historic St. John’s Church at 9 to 9:30 a.m. for Day at the Capitol (DATC) check-in. Families will pick up the DATC schedule and their Capitol tour tickets.
Parking
Parking at St. John’s Church for registration check-in and tour tickets is free. St. John’s Church is approximately a five-minute drive (1.1 miles) from the Capitol tour entrance, located at 1000 Bank Street. Do not plan to walk as Broad Street crosses I-95.
At the end of the session at the church, you will need to move your vehicle to parking adjacent to the Capitol. There is no outside, above-ground parking available on Capitol Square or at/near the pedestrian entrance to the Capitol at 10th and Bank Streets.*
Visitor parking is available at an underground lot off 9th Street, just beyond the lighted intersection with Bank Street (*Credit card required at $5 per hour, maximum $20 daily).
www.ridefinders.com or www.parkopedia.com are helpful websites to explore various pay parking options in the vicinity of Capitol Square.
*Note: Four 2-hour handicap parking spaces just east of 10th and Bank streets.
Day at the Capitol: Patrick Henry Reenactment!
The day will begin at 9 a.m. at historic St. John’s Episcopal Church in Richmond–the original site of the heated debate for independence among colonial leaders prior to the War for Independence. We have scheduled a special reenactment of Patrick Henry’s “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” speech.
Costumed, professional re-enactors will sit among homeschoolers in the church sanctuary where the Second Virginia Convention was held. Their rousing debate for independence from Great Britain will take you back to 1775. You may find yourself seated beside George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, or Richard Henry Lee. This special performance is only for families registered for HEAV’s Day at the Capitol.
Day at the Capitol: Tours
Guided tours of the historic Capitol building designed by Thomas Jefferson are scheduled beginning at 10:30 a.m. Tickets for your pre-assigned time will be given to attendees beginning at 8:45 a.m. at the church. Capitol tours will begin at the Bank Street entrance to the capital.
The Capitol tour entrance is located at 1000 Bank Street. Nearby parking lots and garages can be found here.
Virginia Supreme Court
Tours will be scheduled at specific times throughout the day. You will not be pre-assigned a time but can pick the time that works best for you. The court building is located at 100 N. 9th Street, directly across 9th Street from the Capitol building, near the bell tower.
Gallery Session Viewing
Parents and students will be able to sit in the gallery above the House or Senate chamber to see legislators in action as they debate and vote on bills. This unforgettable experience will help students understand how a bill becomes a law. It’s quite an interesting process!
Food and Security
The SunTrust [now Truist] building has a wonderful cafeteria and underground parking–it is the closest to the capitol. Other information can be found under the “Visiting the Capitol” tab here.
Meriwether’s has a very small cafe in the Capitol, downsized from it’s earlier service area before 2020. Meriwether’s also has a very nice-sized cafeteria on the 3rd floor of the Truist Center at 10th & Main streets.
The Truist Cafeteria lunch venue has a wide food selection, two check-out lines, and a high seating capacity, unlike the grab-and-go Capitol cafe.
There should also be another, but more crowded, cafeteria operating on the first floor of the new General Assembly Building.
Note: there is no space inside the Capitol available for large groups of visitors to eat. The outside lawn of Capitol Square is available, but there is no place to store lunches here before eating them.
Security check required
People entering the Capitol with backpacks, bookbags, purses, etc., will spend extra time going through security since all those items will need to go through an Xray scanning machine. Having fewer personal effects when entering can save time! Learn more.
House Chamber Presentations
Experience “hands-on learning” at its best! Because the General Assembly adjourned in mid-March, homeschool students are invited to sit in a state representative’s chair on the floor of the Virginia House or Senate Chamber to learn how a bill becomes a law. Ticket times will be distributed at St. John’s Church during the morning session at 9 a.m.
During the House chamber presentations, House staff will instruct homeschoolers on how a bill becomes a law. They will then guide homeschoolers in committee debates and the voting process. You will have an opportunity to discuss a mock homeschool bill then take a final vote. Students will press the same voting buttons on each desk that legislators use to pass or defeat bills. Parents are welcome to join in or help their students participate in this hands-on process in the House chamber.
