Living
SBMS teacher chose to participate in summer program
Friday, 15 June 2012 by Keith Bahlmann
A Belton teacher has been selected to participate in a summer teacher institute sponsored by Humanities Texas and The University of Texas at Brownsville (UTB).
Mark Durfee, who teaches U.S. history and pre-AP U.S. history at South Belton Middle School, will attend "Shaping the American Republic to 1877" on the UTB campus in June.
The institute offers teachers the opportunity to work closely with leading scholars, studying major aspects of U.S. history and culture through Reconstruction.
More than forty Texas classroom teachers will participate in the institute. Each morning, participants will attend dynamic lectures and presentations. In the afternoons, they will join faculty in small workshops to examine primary sources such as historic letters, maps and photographs.
The Brownsville institute faculty includes Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Jack N. Rakove of Stanford University, Daniel Feller of the University of Tennessee, Ken Stevens of Texas Christian University and Carey Latimore of Trinity University.
Charles Flanagan, director of educational programs at the National Archives and Records Administration, will serve on the institute faculty, providing participants with facsimiles of historic documents that support the teaching of U.S. history and government.
Stacy Fuller, the director of education at the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth, will guide teachers in using art to teach U.S. history.
UTB historians Manuel Medrano, Thomas A. Britten, Harriett Denise Joseph, Anthony Knopp, James Mills, Amanda Taylor-Montoya and Michael Van Wagenen will also serve on the institute faculty.
"Humanities Texas is pleased to include an exceptional teacher from Belton in this educational endeavor," said Executive Director Michael L. Gillette. "Bringing teachers together to learn from leading scholars and from each other is an effective way to enable Texas students to receive the best possible educational opportunities."
"Humanities Texas appreciates the opportunity to partner with President Juliet V. García and UTB's fine faculty and staff," Gillette continued.
"Shaping the American Republic to 1877" is made possible with funding from the State of Texas as well as from the National Endowment for the Humanities We the People initiative.
The Brownsville program is one of four Humanities Texas teacher institutes taking place in June at major universities across Texas. Other host universities include Southern Methodist University, the University of Houston and The University of Texas at San Antonio.
Humanities Texas, the state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, sponsors programs promoting heritage, culture and education throughout the state.
For more information about Humanities Texas, visit www.humanitiestexas.org. For information about The University of Texas at Brownsville, visit www.utb.edu.
