Archivist Rebecca Fanning kindly sent me a link to a posting in Spellbound Blog about a pilot program carried out by Yale archivists similar to the project I did last spring with the Arline Allen Kinsel Papers and my high school students.
The pilot aimed to introduce them to what archivists do, work with them to find, understand and describe their family papers and also to present archives as a possible profession to students who might assume that it was only welcoming to Caucasians.
It is exciting to see archival work and value of family history become a legitimate part of the curriculum. There is no substitute for hands-on experience, especially for teenagers. I hope we will see more of these projects in our schools. If you know of a teacher who might like to try something like this, please pass on these links and urge them to try it. I would be glad to answer questions, as well.
