Appalachian Teaching Project presentation
Students from the Appalachian Culture and Sustainability course at Pitt-Bradford will hold an open house Dec. 15 to connect members of the campus community with area agencies interested in working with students on projects.
The open house is a follow-up to a presentation made by members of the class for the Appalachian Regional Commission earlier this month in Washington, D.C. The expenses of seven students and faculty members Dr. William Schumann III, instructor of anthropology, and Dr. Michael Stuckart, associate professor of anthropology, were paid for by a grant from the ARC. Pitt-Bradford was one of 15 colleges to make the presentations for the Appalachian Teaching Project.
The repeat presentation for community development agencies, faculty and staff on campus, and members of the public will take place from noon to 2 p.m. in Room 138 of Blaisdell Hall.
Students in Schumann’s class spent the semester creating a baseline study about community development efforts and identifying ways that Pitt-Bradford can help agencies in reaching their goals. For example, after interviewing the Upper Allegheny Watershed Association, the class proposed that Pitt-Bradford students might be able to help by testing water quality.
“It’s an exploratory project,” Schumann said. “The idea is facilitating discussion.”
Students developed a questionnaire, and each interviewed an agency, with a total of 16 local agencies being interviewed, including Canticle Farm in Allegany, N.Y., and the Elm Street and Main Street projects and the McKean County SPCA, all located in Bradford.
After presenting in Washington, D.C., students had the opportunity for some brief sight-seeing and an hour-and-a-half meeting with U.S. Rep. Glenn Thompson, R-State College, who represents Pennsylvania’s 5th district, where Pitt-Bradford is located.