Seminar and Institute Information

This page includes information pertaining to the next workshops and seminars for Essex LINCs. We have a space limit of 25 teachers for each cohort. At present we are adding applications for the next Fall 2008 cohort to our waiting list. Those applicants will be at the top of the list for the spring 2009 cohort. You can apply here and will be contacted via email with additional information.

Our Summer Institute is a continuation of the first cohort's workshops and is closed at present. There will be 2 cohorts forming during the 2008-2009 school year (one in the fall and one in the spring). There will also be 2 Summer Institutes over the summer of 2009. See more information at the end of this page.

Summer Institute 2008
Topic: "Governing in New England & the Nation"
Teachers must be accepted for Spring cohort (Applications closed 12/19/07) This summer institute contains a graduate credit component in conjunction with Salem State College. More elaborate lesson plans based on Essex County sources will be created. Look for some of them to be posted on our website in the future!

Monday, July 7, 2008
(Amesbury Cultural Center & Rocky Hill Meetinghouse, Amesbury, MA.)
Salem State College Professors, Brad Austin and Elizabeth Duclos-Orsello, are joined by Professor Emerson "Tad" Baker in discussing early town governments. We will then have a rare opportunity to tour the Rocky Hill Meetinghouse in Amesbury, MA. A property of Historic New England, this building was used as both a house of worship and a public building.The lesson this day will focus on early records of Essex County and how to use them in your classsroom.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008
(Marblehead Historical Society & Lee Mansion, Marblehead, MA)
Taking place in the hometown of Elbridge Gerry, a signer of the Declaration Of Independence, this seminar will concentrate on the significance of that event for localities on the North Shore. A tour of the Jeremiah Lee mansion and the Marblehead Historic Society will be a highlight of the day. Our lesson will examine local Revolutionary War and early national documents.

Wednesday, July 9, 2008
(National Archives, Waltham, MA.)
Our partner site, the Northeast National Archives, provides a backdrop for discussion of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. It is the perfect place to talk about the national and local effects caused by adoption of these documents. In addition to our usual discussions we will have a presentation by Professor Patricia Johnston on the use of art in American history lessons. Our classroom activity utilizes the "Great Seal of the United States" and seals of Essex County communities to teach about government.

Thursday July 10, 2008
(Hamilton Hall, Salem, MA.)
A focus on the history of the Early Republic and its influence on culture and daily life lead us to the historic Hamilton Hall in Salem. After a lively lecture and discussion, participants will take a walking tour of Salem with a specific concentration on public buildings within this significant Essex County city. The lesson of the day will feature local architecture and its link to Greek and Roman ideals of government.

Friday July 11, 2008
(African American Meetinghouse and various sites, Boston, MA.)
The "hidden" populations of Essex County and the United States are the focus of this seminar as Professors Austin and Duclos-Orsello discuss the effects of government on people of color and women. The experiences of disenfranchised groups who worked through the system to change government, or simply felt its effects are explored on this day. A private tour has been arranged with staff from the African American Meetinghouse for our cohort. The final lesson of this institute will focus on those populations and how you can tell their stories in relation to the theme of "governing."

Seminars Fall 2008
A new cohort of teachers will be chosen for the Fall/Winter of 2008 (with eligibility for the Summer 2009 Summer Institute). This will be a repeat of the Spring 2008 Workshop topics; Local History in a National Context (October 2, 2008), Governing in New England and the Nation, (November 6, 2008), Working in New England and the Nation (December 4, 2008) and Populating New England and the Nation (January 8, 2009). Another new cohort of teachers will be formed to repeat these topics in Spring of 2009.

For more information concerning seminars, please contact: Bethany Jay at bethany@usingessexhistory.org or Rebecca Zimmerman at essexlincs@gmail.com