[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), honorary co-chair of the Presidential Inaugural Committee, today announced that he has reserved more than three dozen Presidential Inauguration tickets for students and adult chaperones from Lanphier High School in Springfield. The high school plans to send twenty-eight students and members of the Student Government Association to Washington, DC for President-elect Barack Obama's historic swearing-in ceremony.

“While many people dream of the chance to be a part of history, Lanphier High School students were hard at work making that dream a reality,” said Durbin. “Most of these young men and women have never been to Washington, DC, yet they were determined to do everything they could to make the trip. I am proud to have such an outstanding group representing our state at this historic inauguration.”

The Student Government Association at Lanphier High School began fundraising in September and through the generous support of friends, family and the local business community, they have raised over $10,000 for their trip to Washington, DC. In addition to attending the swearing-in ceremony, the Lanphier students plan to spend three days in the nation’s capital, touring sights such as the Lincoln Memorial, the United States Capitol, the Washington Monument, the Supreme Court and the White House.

Each U.S. Senate Office has been allotted 393 tickets to the Presidential swearing-in ceremony on January 20th, 2009. To date, Durbin’s office has received requests for over 20,000 tickets. Each request has been reviewed and tickets will be distributed with the goal of making sure Illinoisans from all parts of the state and all walks of life are given the chance to witness this historic event.

Last week, Senator Durbin announced that tickets would be set aside for the Mikva Challenge organization which plans to send twenty-six students to Washington, DC for the inauguration. Over the next four weeks, Senator Durbin will be announcing other Illinois groups and individuals who have been selected to receive inauguration tickets.