My name is David Young, an autistic student attending classes at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia. I transferred to the college from the Northern Virginia Community College in the fall of 2023 with a plan to graduate as a history major. My interest in history can be thanks to my family, especially my older brother and step-father, who got me into the subject. Studying history helps me to understand the world better and learn new things I didn’t know before. This work on Tuskegee University’s history is proof of that. One of my major contributions to history was working with several other students at UMW to create a video to honor the effects of Lafayette in American culture to honor his 250th anniversary visit to Fredericksburg, which can currently be seen at the Fredericksburg Area Museum. I hope to in the Spring of 2026 be able to study abroad in Japan and acquire some research that I could use for a potential senior thesis here at UMW. My future plan is to become a historian and continue to explore and study the history of our world.