- Travel dates: June 1-June 30, 2024
- Project Type: Short-Term Group Projects Abroad (GPA)
- Grant Award: $105,000 funded by the US Department of Education
- Participants: 16 total: 7 Ohio high school teachers + 3 Wittenberg faculty + 4 Wittenberg juniors/seniors intending to become teachers, Project Director & Co-Director
Introduction
This program is an in-depth experiential opportunity for participants to learn about Polish history, culture, and language, the historical roots of current political forces in Poland, the impact of present politics on minority groups and intergroup attitudes, and opportunities and challenges brought by immigration with specific discussion of displaced Ukrainian people and middle-eastern people arriving via Belarus. We travel to sites related to the Holocaust in Nazi-occupied Poland, so that Ohio public high school teachers, Wittenberg University faculty and Wittenberg pre-teachers can learn comprehensively about the history and contemporary situation of this important Central European country. The goals of the GPA are to increase the number of short-term curricular projects educators have available to integrate into existing courses or around which new courses may be built. High school teachers will align their short-term curricular projects with Ohio high school Social Studies course and topic standards. Local, state and national dissemination of short-term projects is expected.
Traversing the Polish landscape from Krakow and Zakopane in the south to Gdansk in the north, the group will interact with Polish scholars, politicians, and other people via seminars, workshops, and site visits that will challenge and expand their understanding of the history, society, and culture of the host country. While exploring everything from traditional folk culture to contemporary popular culture, Poland’s ongoing political transition and ideological complexity will provide the group with the ultimate political science text, ripe for analysis.
Eligibility
An individual is eligible to participate in a GPA project if that person:
- is a citizen, national, or permanent resident of the United States and holds a valid US passport; and
- is currently employed full-time in a U.S. school system (not applicable to students) and at least one of the following: - A teacher in an Ohio secondary school (please see note below); - A Wittenberg University junior or senior who is a prospective teacher in the area of social studies/social sciences. The student should meet the provisions set by his or her local and state education agencies.
- is available for pre-departure orientation sessions (a few virtual, most in-person) from December 2023 – May 2024. We expect active participation in all sessions.
- Overseas Itinerary and Map
- Preliminary Predeparture Orientation Schedule (events and dates may change slightly)
- is available to travel from approximately June 1-June 30, 2024. Overseas Itinerary and Map
- has received all doses of an approved Covid-19 vaccine.
- has not been awarded a Fulbright award of any type previously.
- is committed to professional educational development and understands and will abide by the short-term curricular project development and dissemination goals.
- understands all costs of the program in Poland for participants, including air travel to Poland, are covered by the grant. Exclusions: Participants are responsible for any passport fees. While traveling all breakfasts and many dinners are provided. Lunches and occasional dinner meals are not provided, and those costs must be assumed by the participant.
- The rigor and pace of the program should be a significant consideration to potential participants. We build in reflection days, yet we cover a lot of ground on foot, using public transportation, and private bus transportation. The GPA program and future students will be best served by participants who are actively engaged in learning by reading, by site visits, and by interacting with others in Polish language study and close examination of Poland’s history and culture as provided by our carefully-selected lecture and activity hosts. Overseas Itinerary and Map
Note: All GPA participants must be Ohio educators, students, or pre-service teachers who fulfill the criteria above and are currently teaching or studying in the eligible fields of social sciences, and/or area studies. (Area studies is defined as a program of comprehensive study of the aspects of a society or societies, including the study of their geography, history, culture, economy, politics, international relations, or languages.)
Program Application Application deadline is October 15
For more information, please contact the program directors:
| Michael Anes, Ph.D. |
| Heather Wright, Ph.D. |
