The Center


For many, the Vietnam War is from the distant past. Some 40 percent of the 4 million people who visit The Wall today are too young to remember. To them the long list of names cut in the smooth black granite are faceless; they have no context, no connection.
  • By sharing the faces and stories behind every name, officers and infantry alike, the Education Center at The Wall will help future generations understand the courage, sacrifice and devotion of those who fell, those who returned, and those who waited.
  • The Education Center project is headed by Jan C. Scruggs, founder of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
  • And like The Wall itself, the second-most visited site in Washington, D.C., the Center will be built entirely with private funds donated by the American people.
  • To preserve the hallowed nature of The Wall and all the memorials gracing the National Mall, the two-story learning facility will be built entirely below ground.

Exhibits will include a wall of photographs of those whose names are on The Wall, a selection of the over 100,000 items that have been left at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, a timeline of key military events of the Vietnam War and a history of The Wall. The Center will celebrate the values embodied by all of America’s service members—loyalty, duty, respect, service, honor, integrity and courage—and an exit exhibit will show images of those who served in all of America’s conflicts, from the Revolutionary War to Iraq.

Over $20 million has been raised for The Education Center, including the lead gift of $10 million from Time Warner. It is estimated that the Center will cost $85 million to build.