New Delhi, Sept. 12 -- Twenty-five years ago, the United States endured one of the darkest days in its history. On September 11, 2001, al-Qaeda terrorists led by Osama bin Laden hijacked four airliners. Three were flown into iconic targets-the World Trade Center's Twin Towers in New York and the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. The fourth crashed in a Pennsylvania field after passengers fought back. Nearly 3,000 people were killed, and thousands more injured.

Two decades later, the Never Forget Fund, launched by 9/11 Memorial & Museum trustees Russell L. Carson, Kenneth I. Chenault, and Scott Rechler, secured $25 million in initial gifts to support education. "As our nation approaches the 25th anniversary of one of the darkest days in it...