"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 seminar will explore a controversial era shrouded in myths and memories. Among the topics it will examine are the presidencies of John Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and Richard Nixon; the civil rights movement; the Vietnam War; the New Left; the counterculture; the women's movement; the gay movement; the conservative movement; the international dimension of youth protest; and the legacies of the 1960s. The aim of the seminar is to provide a balanced history of a turbulent time that continues to influence American politics, society, and culture."

"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."

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 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.

This symposium will "explore the role of metalworkers in supplying the equipment needed to fight the American Revolution. It will focus on the materials, technologies, and skills of blacksmiths, founders, silversmiths, gunsmiths, tinsmiths, and toolmakers," including lectures and craft demonstrations.

This workshop will "provide an interdisciplinary approach to the various dimensions of Franklin’s career as an inventor, which ranged over fields as diverse as science, civic institutions, diplomacy, citizenship, self-government, music, and mathematics." The workshop will include lectures, discussions, a performance of 18th-century music, visits to historic sites, examination of teaching resources, lesson plan creation, and readings.

This workshop will "provide an interdisciplinary approach to the various dimensions of Franklin’s career as an inventor, which ranged over fields as diverse as science, civic institutions, diplomacy, citizenship, self-government, music, and mathematics." The workshop will include lectures, discussions, a performance of 18th-century music, visits to historic sites, examination of teaching resources, lesson plan creation, and readings.

This workshop will "combine scholarly presentations with on-site investigations of the canals, mills, worker housing, and exhibits of Lowell National Historical Park and of other sites in Lowell's historic district. Sessions draw on scholarly monographs, primary sources, and works of literature and historical fiction. It will intersperse lecture-discussions, hands-on activities, and field investigations. In addition to Lowell’s landmark resources, it will take full advantage of Old Sturbridge Village exhibits and scholars to explore pre-industrial rural life and draw on the expertise of scholars and presenters at Walden Pond and the Old Manse in Concord, Massachusetts, to explore how prominent authors addressed the question of industrialization’s effect on American life, values, and the environment." Specific topics will include "American Industrialization: Lowell, Massachusetts, in International Context," "Comparing Farm and Factory Life, and Cash and Market Economies," "Market Volatility, Competition, and Worker Responses to the New Industrial Order," "Industrialization and Nature: A Comparison of Lowell and Concord," and "Immigration and Industrialization: Poverty or Upward Mobility?."

This workshop will "combine scholarly presentations with on-site investigations of the canals, mills, worker housing, and exhibits of Lowell National Historical Park and of other sites in Lowell's historic district. Sessions draw on scholarly monographs, primary sources, and works of literature and historical fiction. It will intersperse lecture-discussions, hands-on activities, and field investigations. In addition to Lowell’s landmark resources, it will take full advantage of Old Sturbridge Village exhibits and scholars to explore pre-industrial rural life and draw on the expertise of scholars and presenters at Walden Pond and the Old Manse in Concord, Massachusetts, to explore how prominent authors addressed the question of industrialization’s effect on American life, values, and the environment." Specific topics will include "American Industrialization: Lowell, Massachusetss, in International Context," "Comparing Farm and Factory Life, and Cash and Market Economies," "Market Volatility, Competition, and Worker Responses to the New Industrial Order," "Industrialization and Nature: A Comparison of Lowell and Concord," and "Immigration and Industrialization: Poverty or Upward Mobility?."