The Rural Experience in America

Professional Development for Teachers

Funded by a grant from the Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources program, NCHE is proud to announce Year 2 of a series of free, professional development opportunities designed to support K-12 teachers focusing on this year's theme, Rural Lives in Context.    

Asynchronous Learning -   From December 1, 2022 through March 31, 2023, registered teachers will self-pace through two online courses:  the Library of Congress 6-week module course, Teaching with Primary Sources Basics, and the Right Question Institute 4-week module course, Teaching Students to Ask their Own Primary Source Questions.  If you do not have a lot of experience using primary sources in your classroom, want to learn about the Library of Congress’s collection of sources, and/or want to add to your toolbox of strategies using primary sources, this professional learning is highly recommended!  

Online Colloquia - Registered teachers will participate in three online synchronous Saturday professional development sessions led by historians, educational specialists, and master teachers. These sessions will be held on February 25, 2023, April 15, 2023, and May 6, 2023 from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm (EST) and will focus on a variety of topics related to Rural Lives in Context.  During this time, teachers also applying for the onsite colloquium will identify a community partner to assist them with their public history project (NCHE is happy to assist if needed.) 

Onsite Colloquium -  15 teachers (preference will be given to K-12 teachers in rural schools) will be selected to travel to the University of Oklahoma along with their community partners on July 15 – 16, 2023.  During this two-day learning experience, teachers and community partners will build civic connections and develop a plan for their students to create a public history project in their own community. In addition, there will also be some planned tours for seeing firsthand public history in action. Teachers will receive a $750 stipend to defray travel costs and up to $750 to support their community project. The application deadline is March 17, 2023.  (For application consideration, teachers must have participated in the Online Colloquia.)

Support will be provided throughout all phases of this project with built-in additional collaboration opportunities with other teachers and the NCHE staff.   

If you are interested in learning how to help your students connect  Rural America's past to the present using historical inquiry, public history, place-based education, and service learning, registration is now open.  Reserve your spot today by clicking below to register for 1 or all 3 of the offered professional learning opportunities.  

The Rural Experience in America Year 2 Flyer