National History Day (NHD) selected eight Maryland teachers, including Snow Hill Middle School’s Beau Williams, to complete their fall professional development program, Inspiring Student Research with the Library of Congress.
The full press release from National History Day is below:
Participants from Maryland include:
- Ms. Stephanie Boyle, Maryland History Day (Baltimore)Ϯ
- Ms. Shirley Davis, The Belaire Edison School, Brendan Campus (Baltimore)*
- Mrs. Pamela Hamm, Boys’ Latin School of Maryland (Baltimore)*
- Mrs. Lindsay Matthews, Easton Middle School (Easton)*
- Mrs. Brittany Pennell, South Carroll High School (Sykesville)*
- Mrs. Lynn Rashid, Marriotts Ridge High School (Marriottsville)*
- Mrs. Tanisha Sheppard, Henderson-Hopkins Partnership School (Baltimore)*
- Mr. Beau Williams, Snow Hill Middle School (Snow Hill)Ϯ
Now in its second year, this online course focuses on using Library of Congress primary and secondary sources to develop and support student research skills and is a feature of NHD’s membership in the Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources (TPS) Consortium. The learning modules support NHD’s 2022 theme Debate & Diplomacy in History: Successes, Failures, Consequences. The course includes four live webinars with an expert historian, and culminates in creating an individual plan for teachers to use resources from the Library of Congress in their classroom in the upcoming semester.
“We are fortunate to have this sustained partnership with the Library of Congress as a TPS Consortium member. Some of the most dedicated educators and subject matter experts work closely with the program’s participants,” said National History Day Executive Director Dr. Cathy Gorn.
“The teachers in this course develop crucial skills in locating and analyzing primary documents. They also discuss how to use primary documents in the classroom, learning a variety of pedagogical approaches that will benefit students’ learning for many years.”
There are 210 teachers enrolled for the fall 2021 course. Upon completing the series, the teachers will have demonstrated the ability to pair Library of Congress resources with active learning strategies to inspire, engage, and support their students. Participants earn professional development credits upon course completion.
This course is made possible by generous funding provided by the Library of Congress, 400 Years of African American History Commission, and BBVA Bank.
* Denotes enrollment funded by the Library of Congress.
+ Denotes enrollment funded by BBVA Bank.
Ϯ Denotes enrollment funded by the 400 Years of African American History Commission.
About National History Day® (NHD)
NHD is a non-profit organization based in College Park, Maryland, which seeks to improve the teaching and learning of history. The National History Day Contest was established in 1974 and currently engages more than half a million students every year in conducting original research on historical topics of interest. Students present their research as a documentary, exhibit, paper, performance, or website.
Projects compete first at the local and affiliate levels, where the top entries are invited to the National Contest at the University of Maryland at College Park. NHD is sponsored in part by BBVA, Behring Global Education Foundation, The Better Angels Society, Diana Davis Spencer Foundation, HISTORY®, Tom Lauer, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Park Service, and Pritzker Military Museum & Library. For more information, visit nhd.org.