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The Central Connecticut State University History Department was awarded a $60,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). The project was one of 258 humanities proposals that were funded by NEH, totaling $35.63 million in grant awards nationwide.
Central’s grant is among the first round of awards made under NEH’s new Spotlight on Humanities in Higher Education grant program. Developed as part of NEH’s “American Tapestry: Weaving Together Past, Present, and Future initiative,” the Spotlight on Humanities in Higher Education program supports humanities teaching and research projects that benefit underserved populations at small- to mid-sized colleges and universities.
Central's grant will fund a project crafted by Central History professor Dr. Leah Glaser and her research team. Titled “Finding Your Place: Teaching the History of People of Color in Connecticut,” the project’s goal is to create curriculum and resources on communities of color for Connecticut K-12 educators.
Dr. Robert Wolff, dean of the Carol A. Ammon College of Liberal Arts & Social Sciences at Central, notes, “In the 10 years Dr. Glaser has led our Public History program, she has authored the successful National Historic Register nomination for New Britain’s Downtown District, brought the National Council for Public History annual conference to Hartford, and worked actively with countless community partners. She brings this wealth of experience to the immensely important task of providing K-12 educators in Connecticut the resources they need to help students see their diverse family and community histories embraced in the curriculum.”
Dr. Glaser’s research team includes Central History faculty members Dr. Aimee Loiselle, Dr. Juan David Coronado, Dr. David J. Naumec, and Dr. Camesha Scruggs with support from the History Department’s community partners at the Witness Stones Project, Inc., Connecticut Explored, and the Connecticut League of History Organizations. The team also is working in consultation with the Central Africana Center, the Latin American, Latino and Caribbean Center, and members of the Anthropology faculty.
Wolff adds, “Dr. Glaser, along with her team, will strengthen Central’s commitment to support legislative mandates that require the inclusion of African American/Black and Puerto Rican/Latino Studies, as well as Asian American and Pacific Islander Studies, into the curriculum.”
The Central History Department, in collaboration with the School of Education and Professional Studies, trains certified secondary education History/Social Studies teachers.