One Day Programs

Florida Center for Teachers One-Day District Programs

Sample Topics

The Harlem Renaissance:
Critical Issues in Black Literature and Culture

In the 1920s, African-American literature, art, music, dance, and social commentary began to flourish in Harlem. Known first as "The New Negro Movement," this cultural movement later was named the Harlem Renaissance. More than a literary movement, the Harlem Renaissance exalted the unique culture of African-Americans and redefined African-American artistic expression. This one-day workshop explores the historical, literary, and artistic traditions leading to and including this rich period in America that transformed not only African-American identity and history, but American culture in general. Included is a Chautauqua style portrayal of three literary giants: Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes, and James Weldon Johnson.

Lead Scholar: Heather Andrade, Ph.D., associate professor of literature, Florida International University, Miami

Spanish Florida
How different would life be today if Spain, rather than England, had been the major colonial power to leave its legacy? Would St. Augustine be the Williamsburg or Jamestown that Americans look to for their ancestral identification? Would we be speaking Spanish? Have a national religion? Would we have avoided the Civil War? This program examines Florida's early colonial history. Archaeologists and historians offer insights into Spanish Florida, and discuss Spanish town life and the frontier experience. Teachers learn how the Spanish differed from the British in their religion, economy, social relations, and legal systems. They examine how historians and archaeologists recreate the story of our past, and hear how a teacher has used scholarly materials on Spanish Florida in her classroom.

Lead scholar: Kathleen Deagan, Ph.D., archaeologist and curator, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida

Democracy in Florida
This program focuses on the political system of Florida-its development, character, strengths, and weaknesses. Led by scholars, teachers begin with an historical overview, examining the forces that have honed Florida's political character. Political scientists, politicians, lobbyists, and others with varying perspectives of participatory democracy offer their input.

Lead scholar: David Colburn, Ph.D., historian and executive director, Rubin O'D. Askew Institute on Politics and Society, University of Florida

World War II: Florida Home Front
They're called the Greatest Generation. They are the men who formed the "Arsenal of Democracy" and the women who changed forever the way we think about the role of women. During this seminar, teachers join men and women who lived the experience, scholars who study the era, and presenters who help us to understand both the personal and cultural ramifications of the war. Teachers explore how the war changed the face of Florida, learn about how images of heroes have changed, and struggle with the big issues of war and morality.

Lead scholar: Gary Mormino, Ph.D., Frank E. Duckwall professor of history, University of South Florida

Havens in the Storm
The African American quest for freedom in Florida is the topic of this workshop during which teachers will have the opportunity to examine the big picture of the African American experience and explore three Florida communities that represent different aspects of this odyssey: Fort Mose, the first legally sanctioned free Black community in North America. Eatonville, Zora Neale Hurston's town that prides itself on being the first all-Black incorporated town in the United States; and American Beach, a resort community established during the storm of racism and legal discrimination in the era of segregation.

Co-Scholars: Dr. Carolyn Williams, Ph.D. professor of history, University of North Florida; Darcie MacMahon, assistant director in charge of exhibits, Florida Museum of Natural History; N.Y. Nathiri, president of the Association to Preserve the Eatonville Community

The View from the Shore
As we travel the state of Florida from Miami to Pensacola to vacation, conduct business, and seek entertainment, we rarely stop to think of those who came before us-those who were watching from the shore as our ancestors arrived. Those who lived, not just a generation or two removed, but who lived on and worked this land throughout the history of human occupation. Teachers in this workshop explore Florida's past and her peoples through the lenses of archaeology and history. We begin with an overview of the archaeological record, move to the historical, and then wrestle with contemporary questions of interpretation, perspective, and ownership of objects. What can the archaeological record reveal about social and economic status and cultural traditions? How do we reconcile different worldviews?

Lead Scholars: Jim Miller, Ph.D. former archaeologist for the State of Florida; Patsy West, Ph.D. historian, author