ISSUED: 8 December 2021
MEDIA CONTACT: Dana Costa
SHEPHERDSTOWN, WV — Update: The conference is now scheduled for July 11-22, 2022. Applications are due by February 15, 2022.
They say that if you “teach a teacher,” you touch a thousand lives. That is the driving principle behind the Shepherd University West Virginia Humanities Council Teacher Institute, “Voices from the Misty Mountains, Reclaiming Our Story for a New Appalachia.” A $13,000 grant was awarded to the Shepherd’s Center for Appalachian Studies and Communities for the purpose of bringing 20 K-12 teachers and teacher education graduate students from across the state to Shepherd University July 11-22, 2022, to explore the Appalachian story and take it back to their students.
Dr. Sylvia Bailey Shurbutt, who wrote the grant working with Madge Morningstar and the Shepherd University Office of Sponsored Programs, said this about the teacher institute, modeled after four successful National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) seminars and the 2020 West Virginia BRIDGE pilot teacher institute: “This West Virginia Teacher Institute is designed to bring to teachers instructional tools, resources, professional development opportunities, as well as a body of knowledge to enable them to carry West Virginia’s rich cultural history and story to children across the state.”
“At the same time, the Institute will provide participants with $500 individual stipends to cover Institute expenses, individual professional development goals, and/or classroom resources and materials,” Shurbutt added. “The institute will provide access to inspiring literary artists and scholars, bringing enriching experiences for the classroom, giving teachers the tools and means to re-envision their curricula, dispel stereotypes about the region, and bring positive self-images to students across the state.”
Literary artists involved in the institute include Weatherford Award authors Silas House and Gretchen Moran Laskas and storyteller Adam Booth. Scholars who will contribute are George Tyler Moor Center for the Study of the Civil War director Dr. James Broomall, award-winning teacher Rachael Meads, and, Shurbutt, the 2006 West Virginia Professor of the Year, who will also serve as institute director.
Aside from the historical and cultural discussions and inspiring artists, the teachers will be provided with two enriching field trips (Harpers Ferry/Storer College and Antietam National Battlefield). As is the case with many Shepherd University classes since the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic, the two-week institute will be available both virtually and in-person in a synchronous format, with all participants able to enjoy the discussions and artists.
Teachers and graduate students will be able to receive graduate credit for the summer institute and/or certificates of completion at the end of the intensive course. Dr. Richard Stevens, dean of the Graduate School, noted that, “this experience is not only a wonderful personal journey, but provides participants insight into the M.A. in Appalachian Studies curriculum of which this course is a part.” Graduates may apply this course toward the degree requirements if they wish.
Teachers and librarians across the state, from every discipline and grade level, are invited to apply to the K-12 summer institute before the February 15 deadline. A few places for graduate students will also be provided, as the goal of the institute is to create an enriching and stimulating environment and exchange of ideas, aiming to achieve as much diversity as possible.
Interested teachers, librarians, administrators, and graduate students can learn more about and apply to the 2022 program on the West Virginia Summer Teacher Institute website.
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