Chicago Teachers as Scholars is a collaborative professional development program. TAS strives to reconnect Chicago Public School teachers with the world of scholarship and inspire them to model the love of learning for their students.
Chicago Teachers as Scholars (TAS) offers a series of intellectually stimulating, content-based seminars led by scholars from area universities and colleges. Participants can expect engaging discussions on a broad range of topics with the seminar leaders and other participants. Seminar topics focus predominantly on the humanities, are related to the Newberry’s collection, and align with the Common Core Standards in English Language Arts and Literacy in History/Social Studies. Science, math, and current events topics are also incorporated into the seminar schedule.
During the 2010-11 program year, nearly 165 teachers from 59 Chicago public schools attended TAS seminars. Participants in the 12 seminars examined such diverse topics as immigration and American national identity, the concept of utopias during the European Renaissance, Chicago literature, an examination of the wars in Vietnam and the revolutions in Latin America, the impact of racial beliefs in Shakespeare’s Othello and in Aphra Behn’s Oroonoko, and the evolution and development of Chicago’s lakefront.
Seminar Format
Seminars take place over a one or two-day period during the week and are held at the Newberry. Seminars begin at 9 am and run until 3 pm each day. Participants receive up to five CPDUs credit hours per seminar day towards their State of Illinois certification renewal. Register Now.
Program Costs
All program costs affiliated with participation in TAS, including program materials, meals, and seminar readings, are covered by grants and private donations. Principals are asked to cover the cost of substitute teacher coverage for the first day of the first participant from each school; TAS covers all remaining substitute teacher fees.
Acknowledgements
The Newberry and the Chicago Public Schools are grateful to the Polk Bros. Foundation for a major grant that enables Chicago Teachers as Scholars to help enhance public education by offering high-quality professional development programs for CPS teachers. A thanks is also owed to the Albert Pick, Jr. Fund, and Peoples Gas for the continued support of TAS. The Newberry also received grants from The Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission and the Terra Foundation for American Art supporting the Abraham Lincoln and the American art-based seminars. Again, the Center for Latin American Studies at the University of Chicago has provided partial funding for the Latin American civilization-based seminars.
For questions or more information contact Mark Hurst, TAS Coordinator, at hurstm@newberry.org.
2011-12 Seminar Schedule
This third session of the Teachers as Scholars seminar, Art and Exporation in 19th and Early 20th Century American Culture will give participants the opportunity to share the lessons and classroom experiences with material from the April session.