Niagara University Students Learn About Local History Through Partnership with Niagara Falls National Heritage Area

The Niagara Frontier is rich with history, and Niagara University students have the unique opportunity to learn more about it through a partnership with the Niagara Falls National Heritage Area.

The program was initiated by Dr. Hope Russell, an adjunct professor of women' studies at NU who also serves as director of education and interpretive planning and historian for the NFNHA, and its educational consultant, Roberta Faery, a middle school social studies teacher in the Newfane, N.Y., school district.

"One of our main goals is to connect NU faculty, staff, and students to the Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center and to the tremendous histories of Niagara Falls more broadly," Dr. Russell said.

"We were also looking for avenues to connect NU education majors to practical activities for local students," Faery added. "The Heritage Center is a place where voices and perspectives of marginalized people are showcased. It is our goal to share this contemporary history with future educators."

The program was piloted during two sessions of Dr. Matthew Vermette's online EDU 465/765 Social Studies Methodologies courses. Students took a virtual tour of the Heritage Center, led by director of community engagement Saladin Allah, to learn more about the stories of freedom seekers in Niagara Falls. Following the tour, Faery facilitated discussions around ways the themes of courage, fear, and social justice could be integrated into school curriculums and how the Heritage Center can be a resource for content and field trips. The students also considered various strategies to teaching contemporary history, noting the value of incorporating multiple perspectives and all voices.

"The methods course is often split between American and Canadian students, and the tour is incredibly eye opening for them on multiple levels," Dr. Vermette said, noting that many of his students don't know the local historical significance and importance of Niagara Falls, N.Y., and the Cataract House. "This tour provides these future social science educators a very unique way to embed diverse sources within their instructional practice, as the center's exhibits display many true historical records of people seeking freedom with interactive digital sources that will engage students."

"We started with EDU faculty and students because we were curious how future teachers would teach the Heritage Center pre- and post-visit to our museum," Dr. Russell said. "We wanted to pick their brains, so to speak, which we have done in the virtual sessions with Dr. Vermette's class. It's been a very collaborative process!"

In addition to learning ways the Heritage Center could be used in their future classrooms, the students recognized the positive impact the center is having on bridging neighborhoods in Niagara Falls, especially through projects including murals around the center and Prophet Isaiah Robertson's Second Coming House.

Dr. Russell, Faery, and Josh Poole, visitor experience specialist/operations specialist at the Heritage Center, are also working with Dr. Karen Poland, assistant professor of education at NU, to discuss ways historical sites can influence educational policy, instructional practices, and the socio-cultural context within communities. They are planning future collaborations with interested professors, and Dr. Russell notes that she can help facilitate bringing classes to the center, adding that the Discover Niagara Shuttle, an initiative of the NFNHA, is available to transport students. NU

"We are in the early stages of this initiative," said Faery. "However, the response from NU students is of curiosity and interest, which I feel are the first steps in building additional relationships with students and faculty at Niagara University."

The NFNHC is one of 62 National Heritage Areas in the United States. Designated by the United States Congress in 2008, its mission is to preserve, protect, and promote the historic, natural, and cultural resources of the area stretching from Niagara Falls to Old Fort Niagara in Youngstown, N.Y.