The Lansing School District and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) are pleased to invite area teachers to apply for participation in a NEH Picturing America Conference entitled “Mid-Michigan’s Legacy as the Arsenal of Democracy” in May, 2012.
Facilitated by the Lansing School District, this second conference (the first identical conference in March was fully enrolled) will be hosted by WKAR at the College of Communication Arts & Sciences at Michigan State University, May 10 through May 12, 2012.
The Thursday opening session is from 6 – 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday sessions will run from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Sessions will include scholarly presentations based on the theme of innovation, a campus walking tour of New Deal/WPA public art, an art exhibit, field trips to R.E. Oldsmobile Transportation Museum & the State Archives, and practice in the use of digital storytelling developed for classroom use.
Teachers will receive supporting scholarly materials. Teacher leader sessions will provide examples of utilizing art to support cross discipline learning in the classroom.
Following the conference, participants will submit a lesson plan/teaching activity based on the content of the conferences, and will be eligible for a $300 stipend to support arts integration plans. State Board Continuing Education Units (SBCEU) credits will likely be available.
The conference is limited to 35 teachers of history, social studies, English-language arts, visual arts and the humanities at all grade levels. Participants are being recruited statewide. Applications will be considered on the basis of application date and the strength of the application essay. The conference is planned in collaboration with partner scholars from Michigan State University, Michigan Historical Museum, Archives of Michigan, R.E.O. Museum, and WKAR Radio.
Application deadline is 4/15/012 (but the sooner the better as the conference will fill quickly). Contact: Doreen Meffert at 517-977-6567 or Doreen.meffert@lansingschools.net to obtain the application form.