Showtime at the Shelling Sends 16 Scholars on a Cultural Journey Through Memphis, May 6–8, 2026
Monroe, LA — Sixteen 5th and 6th grade scholars from Roy Neal Shelling, Jr. Elementary School, accompanied by five school staff members, will travel to Memphis, Tennessee, May 6–8, 2026, for a three-day cultural and historical experience — earned through merit in the school’s Showtime at the Shelling talent competition under the direction of music teacher Robert K. Wright.
Students will lodge at the historic Peabody Memphis — a hotel that once hosted Confederate Generals Robert E. Lee and Nathan Bedford Forrest, and where Jefferson Davis himself resided in 1870. For African American children from North Louisiana to walk that same lobby as honored guests is not a coincidence; it is the point. It is history answering itself, and it reframes what these scholars believe is possible for their own lives.
The itinerary includes the Stax Museum of American Soul Music, where students will trace the roots of the sound that shaped a generation, and the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel, where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his life for the freedoms these children now inherit. The group will also enjoy a dine-in cinema experience at Malco Powerhouse featuring the film Michael. Scholars will travel in style aboard a Mayo Tours motorcoach, outfitted in brand-new school attire. All lodging, transportation, and meals are fully covered by the school, with additional sponsorship from HAMPCO, Inc.
A public send-off celebration will be held at the Roy Neal Shelling, Sr. Elementary School on Wednesday, May 6, 2026, at 8:00 a.m., as students board the coach for Memphis. Families, community members, and local media are invited to attend and cheer the scholars on as they embark on what promises to be a defining memory of their elementary school years.
“These are the trips our students need — exposure to a world beyond their own neighborhood,” said Principal Shandra N. Smith. “I wanted them to travel in luxury and have the best experience possible.”
