Julie Kinnaird | March 15, 2021
UNC World View is excited to announce the 2021-22 Fellows Program Exploring Indigenous Cultures: Ancient North Carolinians, Past and Present. The UNC World View Fellows Program is a partnership with the UNC Research Laboratories of Archaeology and the UNC American Indian Center. We will utilize the expertise available at UNC-Chapel Hill to expand participants’ knowledge of indigenous peoples, past and present, and support educators in developing culturally appropriate, relevant, and historically accurate curricula for teaching about American Indian peoples and cultures, specifically ancient North Carolinians. The lessons created will enable students to learn about the indigenous peoples that inhabited what we now call North Carolina from thousands of years ago to the present. Lessons should also make connections from the past to the present day by exploring multiple resources within the Ancient North Carolinians website to examine how roles of indigenous populations changed over time and what influenced these changes.
Indigenous peoples lived in the area we now call North Carolina for at least 15,000 years. Archaeologists study the remnants of their communities to learn who these people were and how they lived and prospered for thousands of years. By collecting pieces of the archaeological puzzle, we know more about past indigenous lifeways and how people and cultures changed over time. Today, North Carolina is home to the largest population of American Indians east of the Mississippi River, totaling more than 184,000 people with eight state-recognized tribes and four urban Indian organizations. Through the Fellows Program, we will explore the ancient peoples that lived here and those who represent today’s vibrant American Indian populations. Understanding past indigenous lifeways—their complexity, resiliency, and vitality—allows for a greater appreciation of the contributions American Indians made to the past and continue to make to the present and future of North Carolina.
North Carolina K-12 and community college educators teaching in any discipline are invited to apply. Fellows will attend professional development programming, engage in tailored support sessions, and develop comprehensive lesson plans that engage K-12 and community college students in learning about North Carolina’s indigenous cultures by using the Ancient North Carolinians: A Virtual Museum of NC Archeology website. This selective program will accept a total of 12 Fellows representing a variety of disciplines in K-12 schools and community colleges. Fellows who successfully complete the program will receive a stipend of $500 and 50 professional learning contact hours (5 CEU). Click here to learn more or to download the application. Applications are due April 14, 2021.