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Strategic Communications and Integrated Marketing
518-783-2300
kjubie@siena.edu
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Ken Jubie
518-782-6933 or 518-859-8632
kjubie@siena.edu
(Insert Hometown) Resident Attends National Endowment for the
Humanities Landmarks of American History and Culture
Workshop for School Teachers
(Insert Hometown) resident and (Insert
Grade/Subject) teacher (Insert Name) will attend a
workshop for teachers titled “Heaven on Earth: Shakers,
Religious Revival and Social Reform in America.” The
weeklong conference will run from (Insert Dates
Attended) at Siena College. (Insert last name) was
among a select group of 80 K-12 educators from across
the country chosen to attend this prestigious workshop
sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). (Insert last name) and
his/her colleagues will learn about the American Shaker movement and its impact on United States
history.
(Insert quote from conference attendee. Quote should discuss the value of the conference,
highlights of what he/she expect to learn and what impact it will have on his/her teaching.)
“Heaven on Earth” is funded through a NEH grant worth more than $175,000. It is led by Siena
College Associate Professor of History and Director of the McCormick Center for the Study of the
American Revolution Jennifer Dorsey, Ph.D.
“This workshop offers participants an extraordinary opportunity to
gain a better understanding of an important piece of American
history,” said Dorsey. “Siena College is proud to provide teachers and
librarians with the chance to enrich their teaching.”
“Heaven on Earth” is part of the NEH Landmarks of American
History and Culture workshops for school teachers. It takes place on
the Siena College campus and at three landmark historic sites:
Watervliet Shaker National Historic District (the first Shaker site in
America), Shaker Museum Mount Lebanon and Hancock Shaker
Village in Massachusetts.
NEH Landmark Workshops engage teachers in an intensive study of American history and culture
though scholarly interpretation of cultural sites, key primary sources, documents and scholarly
works. According to the NEH, “New York’s Capital Region, with its ample trove of documents,
collections and preserved Shaker communities, is prime territory for studying Shaker history and
culture. The workshop provided a rich account of Shaker life as situated within both scholarly
perspectives and the Shakers’ own writings and remarkable material culture. The teachers in
attendance will know that the Shakers stood for more than well-crafted furniture and appreciate
them in all their historical and cultural complexity as an important part of the American story.”
Along with visiting historic Shaker sites, participating educators
will engage in interactive seminars with scholars and museum
professionals. They will explore the collection of Shaker
documents housed at the New York State Library and view the
comprehensive collection of Shaker artifacts held by the New
York State Museum.
“We want participants to leave the workshop with a deeper
appreciation of Shaker history and the influence of the Shaker
movement on American culture.” Dorsey said.
The NEH Landmarks program is now in its 10th year. It has supported 220 workshops at more
than 80 locations nationwide. More than 16,500 teachers from all 50 states and many U.S.
jurisdictions have participated in Landmark workshops. As a result, hundreds of thousands of
students throughout America have benefitted from their teachers’ enhanced knowledge and renewed
zeal for teaching. “Heaven on Earth” is among the 21 projects happening this summer.
This is the McCormick Center’s second NEH grant since 2010. The grant proposal was developed
in partnership with the New York State Education Department's Office of Cultural Education,
Shaker Heritage Society, Shaker Museum and Library and Hancock Shaker Village.
About the McCormick Center for the Study of the American Revolution:
Siena College’s McCormick Center for the Study of the American Revolution was founded in 2005.
The McCormick Center is an academic program that combines academic history with service and
outreach initiatives. McCormick Center students complete internships and take courses that
emphasize cultural, social, economic, military and constitutional history during the era of the
American Revolution. Students are given unique opportunities to learn about the American
Revolution through partnerships with museum, public history and preservation professionals in
New York’s Capital Region. They also take courses that emphasize essential skills in public history
including management, budgeting, marketing, public relations and the computer sciences.
Photos (in order of appearance): Hancock Shaker Village, Watervliet National Shaker Historic District, Shaker Museum and Library
Siena College is a learning community advancing the ideals of a liberal arts education, rooted in its identity as a
Franciscan and Catholic college. Located in Loudonville, N.Y., two miles north of the state capital, the 176-acre
beautiful, suburban campus is home to 3,000 undergraduates. Siena offers over 1,200 program combinations from
27 majors and 49 minor and certificate programs. Siena College: Celebrating 75 years of providing the education of
a lifetime.