MSMS Teacher Part of New National History Program
WASHINGTON, D.C. – National History Day (NHD) announced this morning the
launch of phase one of a new teacher resource, www.abmceducation.org. Ms.
Julie K. Heintz, a teacher at the Mississippi School for Math and Science in
Columbus, Mississippi, is one of the contributing teachers who is helping to
develop these resources that will assist educators in teaching World War II. The
resource presents an interdisciplinary approach to the war in northern Europe and
is a major educational initiative from the American Battle Monuments
Commission (ABMC).
Ms. Heintz has been studying the story of Captain Charles Dunbar Lancaster
Hewes, a member of the U.S. Army Air Forces’ 335th Fighter Squadron, 4th
Fighter Group.
Captain Hewes served in both the Pacific and European theaters of
war, flying pursuit planes and B-25 bombers in the Pacific. He returned to the
United States and volunteered for duty in Europe, where he was shot down during
the Battle of the Bulge. Hewes ejected, was taken as a Prisoner of War by the
German Army, and died on February 13, 1945. Captain Hewes is buried at
Ardennes American Cemetery in Belgium.
“National History Day is honored to coordinate with the Roy Rosenzweig Center
for History and New Media to develop this engaging resource. This group of
teachers has demonstrated extraordinary scholarship and research skills,” said
NHD Executive Director Dr. Cathy Gorn. “The website in development reflects
original and insightful use of unique primary source documents, many of which
are being re-imagined for classroom use. As we lose the WWII generation, these
stories and lessons are designed to preserve the legacy of those who gave so
much.”
Ms. Heintz has been working on the resource as part of a contract with the
American Battle Monuments Commission’s (ABMC) domestic education program
for World War II in Northern Europe, administered by NHD and the Center for
History and New Media at George Mason University. The purpose of this contract
is to develop a Teacher Institute on the Teaching of World War II in Europe that
will result in sound lesson plans and teaching ideas that utilize ABMC’s sites and
resources.
The first phase of this website, launched in conjunction with the 70th anniversary
of Victory in Europe (V-E) Day features profiles on ABMC cemeteries in Northern
Europe. In July, these teachers will engage in a two-week institute in Great Britain,
France, Belgium, and the Netherlands, following the path of the Allied troops who
fought through northern Europe 70 years ago.
This resource will be expanded in November 2015 to include interdisciplinary
teaching modules developed by Ms. Heintz and the other teachers selected to
participate in the institute. Each lesson module will link to the story of a fallen
hero – a member of the Armed Forces who died and is buried or memorialized in
one of the six military cemeteries that the group will visit.
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