Democratizing history requires putting original sources in the hands of the people. With this in mind, the University of Virginia’s Center for Digital Editing and the Papers of Martin Van Buren Project invite high school social studies teachers to join us to co-develop lessons around themes from the mid-19th century that retain their importance today.
Participants will take a deep dive into the work and life of President Martin Van Buren, thinking deeply about topics such as the two-party political system, presidential campaigning, territorial expansion, and democracy. This project will involve developing and testing lessons for use in the classroom.
The ideal accepted cohort of twelve teachers will represent a diversity of geographical locations across the United States, school types (public, private, parochial, etc.), and teaching expertise and approaches.
This program will take place from October 2025 - May 2026. The eight 2-hour meetings are on the third Tuesday of each month, from 7-9pm Eastern / 4-6pm Pacific. Meeting dates are: October 21, November 18, December 16, January 20, February 17, March 17, and April 21. On May 19, participating teachers will co-lead a workshop for a larger cohort of educators.
Participating teachers commit to:
- Attend all nine sessions
- Develop one lesson plan
- Test lesson plan with students and revise as appropriate
- Share lesson plan with other participants and revise as appropriate
Each participant will receive a $2,000 stipend, pending participation in all nine sessions and submission of a lesson plan that they have tested with students, shared with the cohort, and revised accordingly.
Interested teachers should complete and submit this application form no later than August 31, 2025. Applicants will be notified regarding participation by Wednesday, September 10, 2025. Questions may be directed to cde@virginia.edu.