Local students from the Batiste Cultural Arts Academy are headed to the White House to meet with First Lady Michelle Obama and Beasts of the Southern Wild star and Oscar nominee Quvenzhané Wallis this week.

Twenty students from BCAA were chosen as part of the Turnaround Arts Commission, a grant received from President Obama’s Committee on Arts and Humanities that awarded eight schools nationwide a two-year mentorship program focused on arts in education. The students were invited to a special screening of Beasts with filmmakers, leading actress Wallis and the FLOTUS at the White House, where they will participate in a discussion about life in Louisiana post Katrina.

The students leave for Washington D.C. this afternoon for the meeting Wednesday. Safe travels and congratulations!