“This professional learning opportunity, which my students have taken part in over the past four years, separates the social studies education program at Clarion University from others throughout the state, and even the country,” said Dr. Jesse Haight, associate professor of education and the students’ advisor.
A small number of undergraduate students were among the 3,300 conference attendees, and even fewer were selected to present, Haight said. Of the more than 900 presentations, six were given by Clarion undergraduates.
“The impact on my students is immense,” he said. “They learn the ‘nuts and bolts’ of conference presenting. They learn how to write and submit a proposal. They learn how to research and to properly articulate their research in an easy-to-understand way.”
The benefits to students extend further. Haight said the students learn are how to search, write and submit grants for funding and how to network with individuals that are at the very top of the social studies education field.
“Ultimately, they learn the importance of belonging to a professional learning community,” Haight said. “These students are not just part of social studies education, they are leading it.”
Clarion’s undergraduate presenters and their research topics are:
- Antonio Cercone, sophomore secondary education (social studies) major from Trafford: “Satire to Serious, Comedy to Consequential, History in Pop Culture”
- Ashley Deen, senior secondary education (social studies) major from Titusville, and Lauryn Tyler, junior secondary education (English) major from Freeport: “LGBTQ: Always Here, Finally in School”
- Alexandra Elias, senior secondary education (social studies) major from Cranberry Township, Butler County: “How American Beliefs Affected American Immigration”
- Tyler Hilbert, senior secondary education (English and social studies) major from Callensburg: “So You Want to Start a Revolution: Teaching Rebellion via Media Literacy”
- August Kraus, senior history major from Summerville: “Keeping ‘Yule’ in ‘Yuletide’: The Origins of Our Holidays”
- Mallory Piercy, senior secondary education (English) major from Seneca: “Political Lessons in Harry Potter”
This was the third national conference presentation for Deen, Hilbert, and Elias.