‘Democracy in Place’ makes the state a living classroom
Nearly 100 teachers attended summer retreats in Asheville and Wilmington as part of a Carolina K-12 initiative tied to America250.
Cori Greer-Banks wanted teachers to experience the impact of democracy through history — not as a dusty idea only rooted in the past — but as a living, breathing thing being shaped by local communities throughout the state.
Greer-Banks was a classroom teacher for 24 years before becoming director of Carolina K-12 in November 2024. Through the program, Carolina Public Humanities in the UNC College of Arts and Sciences provides the state’s educators with place-based professional development programs, an online database of innovative lesson plans and training.
North Carolina educators gather on the deck of Battleship North Carolina. (Submitted photo/Gina Flow)
A three-year $974,000 civic education grant from the U.S. Department of Education to Carolina K-12 jump-started the grant’s impact through “Democracy in Place,” an initiative connected through separate teacher retreats this summer in Asheville (“Mountains of Democracy”) and Wilmington (“Harbors of Democracy”).
Through interactive workshops and field experiences, democracy came alive for teachers as they were given the tools “to infuse local democracy into their classrooms,” Greer-Banks said. “We have an opportunity through this grant to help promote healthy civil discourse and to find examples of ‘democracy in place’ close to home — to explore how democracy has been shaped, challenged and carried forward, and how these stories can deepen classroom teaching today.”
Antwain Hunter, assistant professor in the UNC College of Arts and Sciences’ history department, delivered a lecture on Brown v. Board of Education. (Gina Flow/UNC-Chapel Hill)
Participating teachers received the textbook “Foundations of American Democracy: A Critical Documents Reader,” the brainchild of 11 Carolina historians, with free digital access provided for their students.
Both the Asheville and Wilmington retreats opened with a virtual seminar led by Kathleen DuVal, Pulitzer-Prize winning historian and an editor of “Foundations of American Democracy.” Antwain K. Hunter, assistant professor of history, co-led workshops at both sites in person, along with representatives from the National Paideia Center. He discussed the landmark case Brown v. Board of Education.
Actor and playwright Mike Wiley, left, and singer-songwriter Dawn Landes perform “Well, I Declare” on the porch of the Bellamy Mansion Museum in Wilmington. (Submitted photo/Gina Flow)
In Asheville, teachers participated in themed walking tours of the city, visited the Zebulon B. Vance Birthplace State Historic Site and Black Mountain College, took a bus trip to Cherokee to experience the Museum of the Cherokee People and watch the outdoor drama “Unto These Hills” and more.
In Wilmington, they visited the Battleship North Carolina, viewed a documentary screening at Thalian Hall about the Wilmington 1898 coup and massacre, enjoyed a performance based on the Declaration of Independence by playwright Mike Wiley and singer-songwriter Dawn Landes, explored Masonboro Island and more.
“Place-based learning really hits home the idea that history is now, that we are shaping history as we speak,” Greer-Banks said. “It drives home this idea of history being relevant.”
Teachers visit Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center. (Submitted photo/Gina Flow)
In both retreats, teachers interacted with historians, artists, performers, museum educators, archivists, community leaders and their fellow teachers.
After the experience, 21 educators volunteered how they would follow up in the next 30 days to build or revise local history units, work to strengthen student dialogue and connect their classrooms with local community leaders and more.
“I am going to spend time exploring the archives to build a unit that involves storytelling surrounding Hurricane Helene,” said teacher Angel Barnsback, who attended the “Mountains of Democracy” retreat. “My students were directly impacted, and this could be a valuable lesson for them.”
“Harbors of Democracy” retreat attendee Andromeda Crowell said, “I will weave environmental justice narratives into every unit of my biology course and include primary sources for students to examine from what I’ve learned here.”
Educators examine a live blue crab during a hands-on coastal ecology lesson with Carolina Ocean Studies as part of a visit to Masonboro Island. (Submitted photo/Gina Flow)
In her home office, Greer-Banks has a group photo with her students on the steps of The Exploris School in downtown Raleigh, where she taught eighth-graders.
“I look at that picture, and it’s a great reminder of what this ultimately means, which is improving outcomes for students in this state,” she said. “I feel like I didn’t step out of the classroom, my classroom just expanded.”
