Learning, Teaching, and the Archives

Abstract

The Kean University Archives and Special Collections works closely with the Kean University Department of History and Honors History students. Our poster will highlight how we collaborate together to come up with projects, design classes, and introduce students to archival resources. A Women in History class was created to highlight the Congressional Papers of Florence P. Dwyer, which finished the semester with a display of student work at the State House. In addition to undergraduate classes, an Honors Program was established by the Department of History to work especially close with the archivist, professors, and a pre-selected collection. The first collection selected was the Nancy Thompson WWII Scrapbook Letter Collection. To date, 19 students have assisted the archivist to scan, transcribe, and research letter writers. Content from the letters were used to create lesson plans for middle and high school students. Interdisciplinary collaboration with design and computer classes helped in the construction of a website to host the collection online. The students have also attended various off-site conferences on the East Coast, including the prestigious Posters on the Hill in Washington, D.C. and curated an exhibit, a portion of which was on display at the reception on Friday evening.