The Pentagon is the only 9/11 attack site without a visitor center or museum to explain the historic significance of the site. Among the hundreds of thousands of visitors to the Memorial each year, few know that this memorial is different from all others in Washington, DC in that it is located where the event took place. Research showed that there is a unique teachable moment at the Memorial to explain the events on 9/11; the stories of the victims and heroes; the role of the Department of Defense and Pentagon; and how the United States and governments around the world are working to help prevent another 9/11.
With the guidance of the project’s official education partner, National Geographic, the 9/11 Pentagon Memorial Visitor Education Center’s interactive exhibits and education programs will give visitors a sense of the broad impact of the tragedy from a variety of perspectives. Stories of the courage and resilient spirit demonstrated by Pentagon employees, first responders and residents of the area will be shared throughout the exhibits. Content for the exhibits and education curricula will be developed through working collaborations with the National September 11 Memorial and Museum, the 9/11 Tribute Center, the Flight 93 Memorial/National Park Service, the Department of Defense, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Transportation Security Administration (TSA), National Geographic, and Smithsonian Museum of American History, and the Oklahoma City National Memorial/Museum.
In 2013, the Pentagon Memorial Fund worked with Booz Allen Hamilton to develop a sustainable business model, which was used to create realistic conceptual renderings of the 9/11 Pentagon Memorial Visitor Education Center, illustrating visitor accessibility and the unique elevated views of the Pentagon Memorial, the 9/11 family group burial marker in Arlington National Cemetery and the Air Force Memorial. There will be a multi-media interactive exhibit space, a Children’s Education Area, a Reflection Area, conference and meeting rooms, an Auditorium, and a Sky Terrace.
 The 9/11 Pentagon Memorial Visitor Education Center site is in a dramatic location, right where the attack of 9/11 took place and adjacent to the 9/11 Pentagon Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery, and Air Force Memorial. Its orientation corresponds to the path of Flight 77. This thoughtful arrangement creates a powerful backdrop to heighten the experience for visitors as they arrive at the 9/11 Pentagon Memorial Visitor Education Center.
Architects appointed to the project are Fentress Architects, who designed the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Quantico, Virginia, nearby.
National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial
James J. Laychak, President and Chairman
PO Box 3879
Gaithersburg, Maryland 20885
(301) 740-3388
http://911pmf.org/
Fentress Architects
421 Broadway
Denver 80203
Brian H. Chaffee, Principal
chaffee@fentressarchitects.com
(303) 722.5000
