"To many, the Great Plains are part of the Great Flyover, whose landscape and history alike are flat and featureless. But in this region in the middle of the nation, cultures have mingled and clashed for thousands of years. This seminar will focus on the 19th century, though also examining the first peoples and the continuing cultural exchanges of the 20th century. It will begin with the physical setting, plants, and animals, and consider early humans in both Native American traditions and anthropological/archeological studies. Europeans arriving in the 16th century accelerated the long history of change and evolution, initiating more than three centuries of converging peoples and cultures, new centers of power, flourishing trade, calamitous epidemics, and cultural and material intrusions from across the planet. Participants will visit Bent’s Fort to see a cultural crossroads illustrated through one family. The seminar will also examine cattle ranching, homesteading, scientific explorations, and the depiction of the plains in art."

"This course will focus on key episodes when Southern history and the history of the nation intersected at particularly important points: the emergence and spread of slavery, the Founding, the Civil War, the creation of segregation, and the Civil Rights struggle. The course will be taught in Richmond, Virginia, a city rich in museums and historic sites that we will use to explore the subjects addressed in the seminar."

This seminar will be "organized around ten commonly taught topics in American history, including: Native Peoples; The Colonial Period; The American Revolution; The Making of a Country; Slavery and Abolition; The Civil War; The Industrial Revolution; Immigration; and The Civil Rights Movement. Teachers will use maps, biographies of important figures, document and activities booklets, as well as multimedia materials such as contemporary music to develop classroom activities and lessons."

This institute will "explore topics in American music from two distinct yet complementary angles. First, analysis of popular songs as primary source documents offers fresh material to enrich the understanding of social studies and language arts. Second, field trips and authentic performances offer a uniquely engaging evocation of an historical context. Aided by historians, musicologists, and teaching performers, participants strengthen their skills as historians and develop innovative strategies to integrate music into their teaching." Week by week, themes will include "Moving Along," "Work," War and Peace," "United/Divided," and "Home."

This seminar will "explore the separation of powers as it applies to the allocation of responsibility between Congress and the president concerning national security and foreign policy powers," "by examining the foundations of the Framers' thought" and "selected executive-congressional debates as they arose during later military conflicts." The seminar will including readings, lectures, discussions, visits to historic sites, and lesson planning.

"Howard Fineman, Newsweek’s chief political correspondent, visits the National Constitution Center in the thick of the election season to discuss politics, candidates and his new book, 'The Thirteen American Arguments,'" looking at the historical origins and evolution of the arguments that he believes define American politics.

This workshop will "explore political thought and constitutional change with leading experts in the field. Leading scholars and workshop participants will discuss the processes of Constitutional change, taking advantage of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library’s unique collections and exhibits."

This workshop will "explore political thought and constitutional change with leading experts in the field. Leading scholars and workshop participants will discuss the processes of Constitutional change, taking advantage of the National Constitution Center’s unique collections and exhibits."

"Offered in Summer 2008, the workshop will focus on the history and activities that took place on the Vermilion and the Mesabi Iron Ranges. Participants will be provided with resources and new content knowledge for introducing the history of Minnesota's Iron Range region, its contributions, and its people into their current American history curriculum. In order to make this easier, the workshops will be based on national history standards and the national social studies standards and will be organized around three central themes that align with those standards. These three themes are: 1) Natural History of the Landmark: Geography and Geology; 2) The Mines and their Contributions to American History; 3) and the People and the Mines (indigenous peoples, ethnicity, and immigration)."

"Offered in Summer 2008, the workshop will focus on the history and activities that took place on the Vermilion and the Mesabi Iron Ranges. Participants will be provided with resources and new content knowledge for introducing the history of Minnesota's Iron Range region, its contributions, and its people into their current American history curriculum. In order to make this easier, the workshops will be based on national history standards and the national social studies standards and will be organized around three central themes that align with those standards. These three themes are: 1) Natural History of the Landmark: Geography and Geology; 2) The Mines and their Contributions to American History; 3) and the People and the Mines (indigenous peoples, ethnicity, and immigration)."