Who Says Learning History Has to be Dull?

This spring we devoted several posts to the Pennsylvania History Bill of Rights, and even gave you a chance to vote on which provisions you think are most important (if you don’t recall or want to review for the test go here, here, or here). The first provision is that “Pennsylvania’s students understand history in the context of local, national, and world events.” There are so many examples along the Trails of History of site staff and volunteers working with students and teachers to help them broaden and deepen their study of history. Many, if not most, of our offerings are aimed at elementary schools, since that is where the demand for our services is greatest.

Photo of students and crew by Ian Binnington

But this week, we want to show you a program that offers college kids an extraordinary learning opportunity in a classroom far removed from the usual lecture hall or seminar room. Through a partnership announced in February, the Flagship Niagara became the venue for an innovative college consortium allowing participants to study maritime history and the Great Lakes through a combination of shore-based and ship-based experiences. Consortium members include Allegheny College (Meadville), Gannon University (Erie), Mercyhurst College (Erie), and Walsh University (North Canton, Ohio), partnering with the Flagship Niagara League and Erie Maritime Museum.

For the first year’s voyage (completed during a 3-week period this May and June), 15 students and 3 faculty members participated from Allegheny College, Edinboro University, and Mount Holyoke College (Massachusetts). Students became sail trainees, working with Niagara’s professional crew and volunteers. They sailed from Erie to Put-in-Bay, Ohio, and back again, conducting day sails while in Ohio. Ian Binnington, assistant professor of history at Allegheny, led the shore-based instruction, while ship-board lessons were the responsibility of senior captain Walter Rybka.

Photo by Ian Binnington

Describing the students’ time in the program, Dr. Binnington wrote: “The seven students from Allegheny and Edinboro set out to study the War of 1812 and the historical life of sail. They accomplished that goal, but along the way they became part of an historical community of sailors and preservationists. They put themselves last, ship and shipmates first. They accepted leadership and led others. They accepted responsibility and saw their peers do the same. They came as close as one can to re-creating the nineteenth century community of sail. And they would all do it again, in a heartbeat.”

All students kept journals as part of the experience, and the Mount Holyoke students have blogged about their 3 weeks at sea. As is always the case, I can’t do justice in a small space to this outstanding educational effort, so please read some of the student accounts or the Ship’s Log —they may even make you yearn to take to the sea.

Pennsylvania students at the 2009 National History Day competition

Following on the educational theme is breaking news (from last week): Congratulations to the Pennsylvania students who placed in the top of their categories at the National History Day competition at the University of Maryland (College Park), which hosted nearly 1400 entries from around the country (and some from outside our borders). Nine Pennsylvania entries made it to the final round of judging, and two of them finished in first or second place nationally. For results from the state contest in May or other info about the program, visit the National History Day in Pennsylvania website.

Arts on Fire Photos

On Saturday, June 19, the Scranton Iron Furnaces hosted the inaugural “Arts on Fire” industrial arts fair and iron pour. The event was a collaborative effort of a bunch of Scranton-area organizations, including the Anthracite Heritage Museum, Lackawanna Historical Society, Keystone College, Lackawanna County government, Elm Street Revitalization, Scranton Tomorrow, Main Street Scranton, Artworks Gallery and Studio, the AfA Gallery, NEIU19, and United Neighborhood Community Development Corporation (if I’ve left anyone off the list, I apologize). Lackawanna Historical Society has posted some wonderful photos on Flickr. The event was a great success and will, we hope, be repeated.

Valuing Volunteers, Part III

This is the third installment in a three-part tribute to PHMC’s Volunteer of the Year honorees.

This week, we wrap up our retrospective on volunteers recognized for their contributions in 2009. Volunteers of the Year for 2009 were honored at a ceremony on May 8 at the State Museum of Pennsylvania. In two previous posts (here and here), Trailheads introduced you to some of those volunteers, and now we’ll complete the list. The thumbnail sketches below provide a brief glimpse of the fine work of these dedicated Pennsylvanians, but a more complete view is available on the PHMC website.

David G. Rhoades, a member of the Friends of the Pennsylvania Military Museum since the group was founded in 1991, focused massive amounts of time and attention on the job of bringing two 14-inch guns from the USS Pennsylvania to the grounds of the Museum (where they are now on display). Rhoades worked with museum and PHMC staff and the US Navy on logistical arrangements and also spearheaded a fundraising effort that was critical to the completion of this effort. His dedication to this project, and many others, has made a significant impact on the Museum.

The Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania has benefited in many ways and for many years from the volunteer support and advocacy of Jere W. Schuler, a former member of the Pennsylvania State House of Representatives and a former social sciences educator and coach in the Lampeter-Strasburg School District. His work in the restoration shop and in the visitor services area, in addition to his service on the board of directors and advisory council for the Friends of the Railroad Museum, makes him a highly valued asset to the Museum.

Jeff Myers has volunteered at The State Museum of Pennsylvania since 1996, when he worked with the Museum’s archaeology team at Ephrata Cloister. His efforts after that have been devoted primarily to Museum programs, where he makes families feel welcome and cared for. His contributions of time and energy have enhanced such programs as Night of the Great Pumpkin, IdeaZone, and Stop-and-Learn. This winter he helped visitors learn about the newly articulated Marshalls Creek Mastodon, which premiered as part of the TUSKS! Exhibit.

As the most recent embodiment of George Washington at the annual Christmas crossing of the Delaware, John Godzieba has added to the list of his contributions to Washington Crossing Historic Park. He has volunteered at the crossing event for 18 years (as a member of the 5th Pennsylvania Regiment) and has been working diligently to help restart the site’s interpretive programs (put on hold as a result of budget cuts and construction projects). His efforts to help raise funds for the site and to increase publicity and awareness are greatly appreciated.

Several volunteers were designated to receive the Outstanding Service Award, which honors exceptional, long-term contributions in support of PHMC sites and museums. In part 2 of this series, we listed Brian Scott of the Erie Maritime Museum and Flagship Niagara, who received both a Volunteer of the Year award and an Outstanding Service Award. Also receiving Outstanding Service Awards were Robert Lawrence and Ruth Granfors.

Robert J. Lawrence is a founding and charter member of the Friends of the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania and has devoted many years of service as a board member, including serving as President of the organization. During his years of leadership, the museum saw tremendous growth in membership, financial resources, and programs (Steinman Station passenger station, Stewart Junction education center, and the restoration shop, to name a few). The Friends established an endowment fund and advocated for the release of state monies to ensure the expansion of Rolling Stock Hall.

Ruth Granfors has served as President of the Friends of the State Museum during very difficult financial times. Her leadership abilities have gotten the Friends organized and kept them on task as they undertook an extremely ambitious fundraising campaign centered on the Marshalls Creek Mastodon. Granfors worked tirelessly with the Pennsylvania Heritage Society on administrative details and committees to help make the Buy-A-Bone campaign the largest and most successful fundraising effort in the history of the Friends of the State Museum.

A new award was inaugurated this year—the Chairman’s Special Recognition Award. This award highlights the achievements of volunteers in fundraising and advocacy service to PHMC sites and museums.

Pete Shelly and Fred Powell (third and fourth from left above, pictured with State Museum Director Jack Leighow, PHMC Chairman Wayne Spilove, and PHMC Executive Director Barbara Franco) co-chaired the State Museum's Buy-A-Bone campaign, developed in concert with the Pennsylvania Heritage Society. The goal of the campaign is to raise funds for the remounting of the Marshalls Creek Mastodon skeleton and upgrades to the museum’s Paleontology Gallery, which will be the skeleton’s new home when it reopens in 2011. Shelly and Powell brought a level of enthusiasm and energy to the campaign and generated a great deal of excitement around the project. As of the May ceremony, the Buy-A-Bone campaign (which is ongoing) had generated $58,000 in support of the museum.