Dear Secondary Teachers,

We warmly invite you to apply for “Frederick Douglass and Literary Crossroads,” our online summer institute funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH).

The institute will take place virtually.

Our program will provide you with several opportunities to enhance your knowledge and expertise covering Frederick Douglass’s Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass (1845) with students in your classes. In particular, learning and collaborative activities for “Frederick Douglass and Literary Crossroads” will provide you with:

• exposure to scholars with expertise on Douglass studies and African American literary studies
• chances to converse with a variety of secondary teachers who cover American and African American literature
• information about an array of pedagogical print-based, mixed media texts, and digital resources

We realize that secondary school teachers struggle to gain access to conversations and discoveries based on new scholarship and focused discussions on major African American authors. So our institute is designed to provide you with enriching opportunities to learn and share new developments concerning Douglass and African American literary studies with a diverse group of scholars and teachers.
During the institute, we will involve you in extensive conversations about new scholarship on Douglass and useful approaches to understanding and teaching his Narrative and other African American literary texts. We would love for you to consider applying for what we expect to be a rewarding intellectual and educational humanities experience.

Howard Rambsy II, Institute Director