Meet the 2016-2017 Teacher Fellows

Kevin Casey

Pitman High School, Pitman, New Jersey

Creating the President: George Washington in the First White House, Philadelphia 1790-1797

Kevin will use the Presidential mansion in Philadelphia as the backdrop for student learning about the social history of America’s first president. Special focus will be brought to the layout of rooms in the house including additions made by the President, Washington’s role as the face of the new government, and the lives of the individuals working throughout the house including those enslaved.

Joanne Howard

Summer Creek Middle School, Fort Worth, Texas

Dearly Bought Experience: What George Washington Learned From His Failures

Joanne's project will use examples and sources from George Washington’s life that students can use to transform school culture. Her resources will share life lessons about Washington’s ability to overcome failure with students, so they can learn to believe in their own ability to grow intellectually and emotionally while overcoming obstacles.

Don Stancavish

Rocky Mount Academy, Rocky Mount, North Carolina

The Business of Being George Washington

Don will explore George Washington’s biography and source material for lessons covered in economics classrooms today. Individual worksheets can highlight and define finance terms such as diversification, opportunity costs, and the pitfalls of lending money. 

Jennifer Connolly

Preston High School, Bronx, New York

Lesson Plans for study of Early America on Race, Class and Gender

Jennifer will research and develop lessons that will help students gain a better understanding of important concepts like freedom, liberty, and equality by looking directly at people who struggled with obtaining or were important in preserving these ideas. She will explore the writings of and sources from George Washington, Nellie Custis, and a yet to be determined enslaved individual to create materials that explore race, class, and gender in the 18th century.