August 2004
Ulster BOCES Awarded $780,676 "Teaching American History" Grant
Ulster BOCES has received a $780,676
“It creates an opportunity for elementary and middle school teachers to study American history in depth,” said Paul Rubeo, instructional curriculum specialist at Ulster BOCES and director of the program titled “In Pursuit of Freedom: The American Journey.” Describing it as a “history immersion” for teachers, Rubeo said the project will help teachers develop a deeper knowledge of American history that they can pass on to students, with the ultimate goal of raising student achievement. A major element of the project includes the study of primary source materials. “That includes documents that are lesser known, such as personal letters and records of transactions,” Rubeo explained. “It will give teachers a great opportunity to see those documents and spend time with historians.”
The grant provides funding each year for 40 teachers – teaching in grades four, five, seven, and eight – to attend two annual weeklong summer “institutes” at SUNY New Paltz.
In commenting on the partnership with SUNY New Paltz, Jane Bullowa, Ulster BOCES assistant superintendent for Instructional Services, noted that “both institutions have a long history of commitment to improving the quality of teaching in the region.”
Dr. Gerald Benjamin, dean of Liberal Arts and Sciences at SUNY New Paltz, expressed similar sentiments. “SUNY New Paltz has long had an important role in the preparation of social studies teachers,” he said. “The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is delighted that the History Department has been called upon to contribute to this very important initiative.”
The teachers also will engage in school-year instructional activities offered in collaboration with the New York State Museum, the New York State Archives and Records Administration, the Tenement Museum, the Huguenot Historical Society Museum, and the Elting Memorial Library. Activities will focus on a variety of topics including Early Communities in New York, Roots of the Revolution and Constitution, A Legacy of Freedom and Justice, Evolution of 19th Century American Economy, New York and the 20th Century, and The American Immigrant Experience.
Participants will have access to an online learning community for education professionals, as well as HistoryQuest, a virtual exhibit involving students sharing local historical documents.
The first round of institutes is slated for the summer of 2005. Applications are scheduled for circulation this winter.
For more information about the project, please contact Paul Rubeo at Ulster BOCES, 845 255 1402 Ext. 1302 or PRubeo@mhric.org.
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Teaching American History grant from the U.S. Department of Education
to support a professional development program for Hudson Valley teachers.
Created in collaboration with SUNY New Paltz and Dutchess BOCES,
the program will serve 120 elementary and secondary teachers in
23 Ulster and Dutchess County school districts over a three-year period from 2005 through 2007.
Ulster BOCES is one of only 17 educational agencies in New York State and one of
120 agencies nationwide receiving the federally-funded Teaching American History grant.
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