Gather with a small group of teachers from around the country for three days immersed in discussion and exploration of a single topic in American history. Multi-Day Seminars are a free opportunity for teachers hosted near an important historical site. Teachers will prepare ahead of time for seminars by reading selected historical documents in the provided course packet. Once the seminar begins, the discussion leader guides a peer-to-peer, text-based conversation among all participants. Meals, materials, double-occupancy rooms, and historical site visits are 100% covered by Teaching American History. At the end of each course, every teacher receives a letter of participation for fifteen contact hours of continuing education and a stipend of $600 to help defray travel costs.

The World Wars unleashed destruction on such a massive scale, and in such a short period of time, that the nation-states involved were all pressured to make extraordinary efforts to marshal the total resources at their disposal to survive and seek victory. The demands of  these total wars would fundamentally transform the American State, as the federal government, particularly the executive branch, took unprecedented powers to enlist millions of its citizens into the armed forces and to turn the United States’ immense industrial capacity into what Franklin Roosevelt called “the arsenal of democracy.”  This seminar will examine the effects that transformation had on the American state, on the constitutional balance between the branches of government and between the federal and state governments, and on the relationship of citizens to the state.

Please note: The Multi Day Application period is April 9-30, 2024