More than 130 Dublin Coffman High School students representing 27 countries celebrated a USA Day during Spirit Week in spring 2026, one scene among dozens that played out across Dublin City Schools as the district wove a yearlong "My American Story" campaign into classrooms from preschool through 12th grade.

Every building participated.

The initiative, branded "Our Collective Journey: America 250," asked every student in all 25 district buildings to explore what it means to be American through music, art, and writing, according to the City of Dublin. Schools submitted songs, paintings, poems, and digital projects to a dedicated district website that launched June 3.

At a naturalization ceremony held at the Abbey Theater in spring 2026, Wyandot Elementary's fifth-grade choir sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" before 67 candidates from 35 countries took the Oath of Allegiance. The new citizens ranged in age from 19 to 80. Many were visibly emotional as they recited the Pledge of Allegiance as Americans for the first time, according to the City of Dublin.

"Citizenship isn't really about paperwork or process. It's about commitment. It's about shared ideas, shared responsibility and a shared future," Dublin Mayor Chris Amorose Groomes told the newly sworn-in citizens.

Guest speaker Emmet Apolinario, a Dublin resident who immigrated from the Philippines and spent 15 years on his path to citizenship, shared his story with the crowd. Apolinario became a U.S. citizen in 1995 and now serves as Principal-in-Charge of Ohio Business Advisors.

Each of the district's three high schools took a different approach. U.S. History students at Dublin Jerome created silhouettes of presidents filled with facts about each one. Psychology students at Dublin Scioto studied "Mental Health Across 250 Years of America." Students at Emerald Campus built an American flag embedded with images showing how learning has evolved.

Middle schoolers found their own angles. Davis Middle School students designed a "Periodic Table of the Amendments" to the U.S. Constitution. Eversole Run seventh- and eighth-graders created their own Forever Stamps illustrating what America means to them. Grizzell Middle School students planted "The Liberty Tree" to honor the nation's 250th anniversary. Karrer Middle School seventh-graders produced an "America from East to West" video project, and Sells Middle School students distilled their feelings into six-word memoirs.

Elementary projects ranged widely: Bailey Elementary students formed a "living flag" in red, white, and blue shirts; fourth-graders at Chapman Elementary mapped the migration journeys that brought their families to Dublin; first-graders at Olde Sawmill Elementary traced their hands and wove American flag cutouts; and Wright Elementary held a "Share Your Story Day" exploring how students' names connect past, present, and future.

Student work remains archived on the district's America 250 website.