"Gordon Wood investigates George Washington's contributions to the creation of the American republic. The bicentennial of his death in 1999 sparked a reassessment of this extraordinary man and his times. He was commander in chief of the revolutionary army, a leader in the formation of the Constitution of 1787, and the first president of the new United States. Despite these great accomplishments, he remains strangely distant and inaccessible to us in the early twenty-first century. This brief but intensive course helps explain the sources and meaning of Washington’s greatness."

"Professor Berkin and participants will examine colonial society in the decades before the Revolution, the events that led to the struggle for Independence and the experience of nation-building in the aftermath of the war. The seminar will take full advantage of the historic sites and educational facilities in Philadelphia, including Independence Hall, the National Constitution Center, and the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial."

"Professors David Kennedy and Richard White examine the experience of the American people in the Great Depression and World War II, with special emphasis on the implications of those episodes for the American West. Lecture topics include the causes and impact of the Great Depression; the New Deal; the West and American individualism; the military and diplomatic dimensions of American participation in World War II; and the war's impact on American society."

"The seminar will explore the lived experience of ordinary Americans during the colonial period of history. Topics will include: family and household, community organization, making a living, religious belief and practice, witchcraft and magic, and shared patterns of human psychology. Material culture will also receive considerable emphasis: domestic architecture, furnishings, the natural environment. Mornings will be devoted to lectures and discussion; afternoons to field trips and library work."

"This seminar examines the era of the American Civil War, with emphasis on its origins, scope, and consequences. Through lectures, class discussion, examination of historical texts, and visits to historic sites, the instructors and participants will examine the central role of slavery, the ways in which military and civilian affairs intersected and influenced one another, the question of what the war left unresolved, and how Americans have remembered the conflict. In many ways, the issues that divided the nation during the Civil War era continue to resonate today. This seminar will seek to make those issues clear, while at the same time providing a sense of the drama and tragedy of this tumultuous period."

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 institute will look at Jefferson from as many angles as possible to deepen understanding of his character and personality and thus to shed light on America’s founding and the social and cultural history of the early Republic. The Institute will take a topical approach, looking in depth at such subjects as education, intimate life, family, money, religion, science, and slavery. The seminar will including readings, lectures, discussions, visits to historic sites, and lesson planning.

"Dr. Tera Hunter, professor of history at Princeton University, will speak on the impact of slavery on African-American marriages and the struggles of slaves and freedpeople to resist family separation and reunite family members."

This seminar will "enhance participants' knowledge of Africa, the Middle Passage, and the people who arrived here in North America in slavery. They will do so by developing projects of their own choosing involving early Atlantic history, literature, or culture up to and including the early nineteenth century." Topics, week by week, will include "Organization: African Understandings," "More African Meanings," "Embarkation, Exile," "Remembering Africa in America," and "Research Results and Teaching Applications."