Asian-American studies scholar Greg Robinson will speak about Mine Okubo: Following Her Own Road, a new book about the pioneering Nisei artist, co-edited with Elena Tajima Creef. Okubo's landmark Citizen 13660 (1946) is the first and perhaps best-known autobiography of the wartime confinement experience. The book is richly illustrated with Okubo's artwork and contains essays that illuminate the importance of her contributions to American arts and letters.
This final session in the series features a talk from University of California, Davis historian Clarence Walker and lessons presented by three teachers.
Roman traditions appear in the history standards for several grades. Teacher-created lessons will provide participants with new angles on teaching Rome and the "classical liberal tradition" referenced by the U.S. history standards. Teachers will demonstrate lessons; University of California, Davis historian Ellen Haritgan O'Connor will speak.
The We the People Bookshelf, a collection of classic books for young readers, is a project of the National Endowment for the Humanities' "We the People" program, conducted in cooperation with the American Library Association (ALA) Public Programs Office. Each year, NEH identifies a theme important to the nation's heritage and selects books that embody that theme to build the We the People Bookshelf. The theme for the 20082009 Bookshelf is "Picturing America."
Sponsoring Organization
American Library Association; National Endowment for the Humanities
Eligibility Requirements
All public libraries and school libraries (K–12) in the United States and its territories are eligible to apply. School libraries (K–12) include public, private, parochial, charter schools, and home school consortia. Libraries with collections that circulate to the general public and offer reading–based programs for the general public are eligible to apply. Libraries may also collaborate with other (non–library) organizations to develop and deliver programs; however, the Bookshelves must be housed in the libraries to which they are awarded.
Individuals, organizations other than libraries, and schools and libraries operated by Federal entities, such as the Department of Defense, are not eligible to apply.
Application Deadline
Award Amount
Successful applicants will receive a set of classic hardcover books for young readers, all related to the "Picturing America" theme. The set includes 17 books in English and Spanish translations of three of these works.
This event presents a reading and discussion with Rick Hollander, editor of Every Day Lasts a Year: A Jewish Family's Correspondence from Poland. He will recount his family's poignant experiences before and during the Holocaust as revealed through letters found after his parents' deaths.
Marjorie Agosin, recipient of the United Nations Leadership Award for Human Rights was raised in Santiago, Chile until the 1973 coup. She is the author of poetry and prose about human rights, memory, and Jewish identity. Her work exemplifies the power of language to effect change and give voice.
Sonia Nazario will discuss her book Enrique’s Journey, based on her Pulitzer Prize-winning series from the Los Angeles Times. This true story of a Honduran boy's dangerous odyssey to rejoin his mother in the U.S. has the potential to reshape our conversations about immigration.
This workshop will introduce two Holocaust related books: Anton the Dove Fancier and Parallel Journeys. In addition to connecting the content of these books to the Facing History themes of identity, membership, and conformity, facilitators will demonstrate concrete literacy strategies which teachers can implement in their classrooms.
In conjunction with Facing History's content and themes of rescue during the Holocaust, participants will deepen their understanding of the ways one person can make a difference. The workshop will feature the documentary Blessed is the Match, one of Facing History's latest resources that tells the story of Hannah Senesh, the World War II-era poet and diarist who became a soldier, martyr, and national heroine in Israel.