High School teacher selected for summer workshop

VERNON — Robert Wise, a social studies teacher at Vernon Township High School, was selected from a national applicant pool to attend one of 20 summer opportunities supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities, a federal agency that each summer supports Landmarks of American History and Culture workshops so teachers can study with experts in humanities disciplines. Wise participated in a workshop entitled “The Most Southern Place on Earth: Music, History and Culture of the Mississippi Delta.” The one-week program was held at Delta State University in Cleveland, Miss., and was directed by Dr. Luther Brown. The workshop explored the history of the Blues, civil rights, political leadership and agriculture of the Mississippi Delta, and included travel to Memphis. Only 80 teachers from across the country were selected to participate in this particular workshop, although nearly 300 applied. Each participant received a stipend to help cover travel, study and living expenses. Topics for the 20 Landmarks of America History and Culture workshops offered for teachers include George Washington, Emily Dickinson, the Civil Rights Movement, Abraham Lincoln, Mark Twain, the U.S. Constitution, the Mississippi Delta, Civil War Nashville, Fort Niagara, the Underground Railroad, Benjamin Franklin, the Industrial Revolution, Zora Neal Hurston, Ellis Island, the Alamo and women’s suffrage in the West. The approximately 1,600 teachers who participate in these studies will teach over 50,000 American students the following year.