Past Institutes

The West and the Shaping of America


In June 2007, seventy-nine Texas teachers attended two professional development institutes organized by Humanities Texas, Texas Christian University, Texas Tech University, and the Amon Carter Museum of American Art examining the history and culture of the American west.

Curriculum

The Fort Worth and Lubbock institutes explored topics including indigenous peoples and cultures, western exploration and settlement, the frontier and manifest destiny, and the Civil War and the West. Content was aligned with the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS), with particular emphasis on newly added or revised standards.

The institute emphasized close interaction with scholars, the examination of primary sources, and the development of effective pedagogical strategies and engaging assignments and activities. The programs were designed ultimately to enhance teachers' mastery of the subjects they teach and to improve students' performance on state assessments. Teachers received books and other instructional materials.

Faculty

The institute faculty featured some of the leading scholars in Texas and the nation, including Albert S. Broussard (Texas A&M University), Alwyn Barr (Texas Tech University), Richard W. Etulain (University of New Mexico), Robert Goldberg (University of Utah), H. Roger Grant (Clemson University), B. Byron Price (University of Oklahoma), Jo Ann Stiles (Lamar University), and Ron Tyler (Amon Carter Museum).

Educational specialists from the Amon Carter Museum of American Art, the National Archives and Records Administration, the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, and the Southwest Collection also served on the institute faculty, providing participants with facsimiles of historic documents that support the teaching of U.S. history.

Locations and Schedules

June 3–6Fort WorthTexas Christian UniversitySchedule
June 10–13LubbockTexas Tech UniversitySchedule

 More infortmation can be found in the institutes' final report.

Sponsors

Program co-sponsors included Texas Christian University, Texas Tech University, and the Amon Carter Museum.

The institute was made possible with major funding from a We the People grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Questions about Teacher Institutes

Call 512.440.1991 or email institutes@humanitiestexas.org.

2007 Lubbock Institute Participants
Participants gather at the Lubbock Lake Landmark, an archeological site with evidence of nearly 12,000 years of human habitation on the Southern High Plains.
Elliott West Lecture in Fort Worth
Elliott West (the University of Arkansas) opened both the Fort Worth and Lubbock institutes with a lecture examining popular myths about the West and its history.
Teacher Primary Source Workshop in Fort Worth
Stacy Hricko, Amy Thurman, and Judith Trevino (left to right) participate in a primary source workshop in Fort Worth.