NORFOLK, Va. – (Dec. 2004) – Famous illustrations, photographs and paintings depicting critical moments in American history will soon rock the lesson plans of K-12 teachers, nationwide - starting right here in Hampton Roads.

“What do you see in this picture, class?” asks the middle school teacher. A student raises her hand to answer: “Gen. Lee surrendering to Gen. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse.” This fictive classroom exchange illustrates an innovative project coordinated by Tidewater Community College that will use the nation's most famous American art museum's extensive collection of visual imagery to teach U.S. history in public schools nationwide.  

The Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) and TCC have launched a partnership that will further the American History Teacher-Scholars Program as a national model. The program outlines a specially designed training program for 4th through 12th grade social studies teachers in Norfolk and Portsmouth public schools - a program that can be customized for schools across the country. Through the partnership, TCC and the schools will use SAAM visual materials to develop lesson plans to teach the teachers and their students.

SAAM will prepare programming featuring its extensive collection of paintings, prints and photographs to create a “meta-narrative” that translates American history through American art. The unique programming will not only serve as a tool to strengthen the content knowledge of teachers in the Norfolk and Portsmouth public schools, but will also serve as a pilot for SAAM's outreach to history teachers and students throughout the United States.

In the process, TCC faculty will collaborate with SAAM's educational department to develop a classroom resource guide that incorporates Virginia 's Standards of Learning for History into a national curriculum authored by the National Council for the Social Studies. The instructional manual will be developed into a template that can be used by other school districts around the country.

The two-year program will be offered to 73 teachers through a series of workshops and will be disseminated to all social studies teachers in the Norfolk and Portsmouth public schools, says Daniel C. Lewis, director of the teacher-scholars program and a TCC professor.

 “This partnership presents a wonderful opportunity for TCC to revitalize the teaching of U.S. history in public schools nationwide. The project's national scope exemplifies TCC's commitment to fostering a world-class Virginia Community College system in the 21 st century,” says Lewis.

“The Smithsonian American Art Museum is well known for integration of our collection across the K-12 curriculum. The TCC Teachers-Scholars program is a perfect opportunity to build on our distance learning experience and to develop a template that can be used by other school districts around the country,” says Susan Nichols, Lunder Education Chair, Smithsonian American Art Museum.

The collaborative project with the Smithsonian is made possible through the U.S. Department of Education's Teaching American History Grant awarded to Portsmouth Public Schools in partnership with Norfolk Public Schools and TCC's American History Teacher-Scholars Program.

NOTE: In a nutshell, here are the primary elements of TCC's Partnership with the Smithsonian American Art Museum :

• TCC faculty will work in concert with SAAM in preparing a classroom guide that links visual imagery to the Standards of Learning.
• The classroom guide will be made available in an electronic format.
• Teachers, grades 4-12, will attend workshops conducted by SAAM and will receive lesson plans and data over two years locally.
• TCC, Portsmouth and Norfolk public schools will assist SAAM in developing a teacher resource guide for dissemination to public schools nationwide.

To find out more about the Smithsonian American Art Museum , visit http://americanart.si.edu/index3.cfm

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Tidewater Community College is the second largest of the 23 community colleges in the Commonwealth of Virginia, enrolling more than 35,000 students annually. The 37th largest in the nation’s 1,600 community-college network, TCC ranks among the 50 fastest-growing large community colleges. Founded in 1968 as a part of the Virginia Community College System, the college serves the South Hampton Roads region with campuses in Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth and Virginia Beach as well as the TCC Jeanne and George Roper Performing Arts Center in the theater district in downtown Norfolk, the Visual Arts Center in Olde Towne Portsmouth and a regional Advanced Technology Center in Virginia Beach. Forty-four percent of the region’s residents attending a college or university in Virginia last fall were enrolled at TCC. For more information, visit www.tcc.edu