On Tuesday, October 14th, our ECE History 1300 Instructors joined us on the UConn Storrs campus for their annual professional development experience! We extend our thanks to Dr. Sherri Olson, our ECE Faculty Coordinator for History 1300: Western Traditions Before 1500, for her creativity and dedication to creating a meaningful experience for our instructors. The morning began with an address from Dr. Kevin Feeney, an Assistant Professor in Roman History in the UConn History Department. Dr. Feeney delivered a lecture titled “Late Antiquity: An Age Between Ages”, followed by a Q & A session. In the afternoon, instructors participated in a Document Workshop entitled  “Education, Autocracy, and Censorship in Late Antiquity”, where participants discussed The Emperor Julian’s Edict on Teaching. It was certainly a jam-packed day!

Many thanks as always to our contributors and attendees, and we look forward to connecting with you all again next year!

History (HIST) courses available through UConn Early College Experience.

Welcome back ECE Community! It was our pleasure last Thursday, September 25th to host the first professional development workshop of the 2025-26 school year. Thanks to the efforts of Faculty Coordinator Dr. Matthew McKenzie, our ECE United States History instructors met virtually for a timely discussion entitled “Teaching US History in Our Current Climate: Challenges, Opportunities, and Student Support Strategies”. Thank you to all 52 teachers who joined us, and to Matt for his continued efforts and support for ECE.

We’re glad to be back, and cannot wait to connect with many more of you in the coming months!

UConn History (HIST) courses available through UConn Early College Experience.

On Wednesday, March 12, UConn Early College Experience and the faculty from HIST 1400 welcomed certified instructors to the annual professional development conference, held on the UConn Storrs campus in the Babbidge Library’s HBL 1102 Instruction Room.

The day began with a welcome session, followed by a presentation from Dr. Dexter Gabriel, who spoke on “Black People in the European World: From the Early Modern Era through the Age of Emancipation.”

Attendees then engaged in a group discussion centered on selected articles and a video, including:

• “A Conversation on the Black Presence in Tudor England” (Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco)
• Scholarly works by Mullen, Mundell, Newman, and Miguel Valerio, exploring Black lives in 18th-century Britain and Afro-Christian identity in Iberia.

After a short break, Mr. Richard Bleiler, UConn’s Collections & Humanities Librarian, introduced instructors to primary sources available in the UConn Libraries related to Black people in Europe.

Following lunch, Dr. Kaveh Yazdani presented on “Slavery, Anton Wilhelm Amo, and the Appraisal of Blacks in German Lands, 17th to 18th Centuries,” offering valuable historical context and classroom insight.

The conference concluded with an open discussion on how to incorporate race and diversity into the HIST 1400 curriculum, fostering a deeper and more inclusive understanding of European history among students.

On Friday, October 4th, UConn Early College Experience hosted a professional development workshop for certified ECE Medieval Studies teachers, under the guidance of Professor Sherri Olson our ECE Faculty Coordinator for Medieval Studies. Special guest, Christine Cooper-Rompato | English | USU gave a presentation on the Mali Empire in Western Africa, and tasked attendees with discussing their own personal connections to the continent of Africa, as well as engaging with a variety of resources (maps, articles, video, historical documents, etc.) to enhance understanding.

Thank you to all who joined us for an enriching afternoon!

 

UConn History Courses offered through Early College Experience.