Ball State University Libraries is excited to announce the launch of a new teaching fellowship program to fund the incorporation of primary source learning into K-12 classrooms in East Central Indiana.  The Ball State University Libraries U.S. Civil War Teaching Fellowship Award will pay East Central Indiana K-12 educator(s) (including preservice teachers) $5,000 to research, develop, conduct, assess, document, and share a significant educational activity (educational lesson, project, assignment, creative endeavor, etc.) that engages local K-12 students in meaningful learning through the direct use of primary sources.

The educational activity should incorporate learning related to one or more of the following topics: the U.S. Civil War, the Reconstruction era, any aspect of United States or Indiana political, cultural, social, or economic history during the period from 1850 to 1880.

Fellowship recipients are expected to use archival collection materials from the Frank Bracken U.S. Civil War Collection or Bracken Family Collection held at Ball State University Libraries’ Archives and Special Collections to inform their research and lesson planning.  Recipients may also incorporate any other relevant primary source resources at Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries, or other archives, libraries, museums, digital repositories, etc.

To apply for the fellowship and learn more information about the program, view the call for proposals and application.

The first round of fellowships will extend from May 1, 2022 to July 1, 2023.  During this time period, fellows will conduct research at Ball State University Libraries and elsewhere, develop the educational activity, implement the educational activity in a classroom setting, and produce a midterm and final report including a shareable lesson plan.  The deadline for applications for this fellowship period is March 1, 2022.

Fellowship applicants must be serving as a K-12 educator(s) (including preservice teachers) and must be working within schools within East Central Indiana during the 2022-2023 academic year.  For the purposes of this fellowship, this region includes the following Indiana counties: Blackford, Delaware, Grant, Fayette, Hancock, Henry, Jay, Madison, Randolph, Rush, Union, and Wayne.

The Ball State University Libraries U.S. Civil War Teaching Fellowship Award draws on a collecting strength of Ball State University Libraries’ Archives and Special Collections—primary source resources pertaining to the U.S. Civil War.

The Frank A. Bracken U.S. Civil War Collection provides access to U.S. Civil War related correspondence, certificates, maps, photographs, plaques, weapons, uniforms, and other artifacts from circa 1860-2000 collected by Frank A. Bracken.  Selections from this collection have been digitized and are available in the Ball State University Digital Media Repository.

The Frank A. Bracken U.S. Civil War Collection also contains a significant number of books which have been cataloged and can be discovered and searched.

In addition, over 4,000 items have been digitized as part of University Libraries’ U.S. Civil War Resources for East Central Indiana digital collection, created in

collaboration with the United States Vice Presidential Museum at the Dan Quayle Center, the Henry County Historical Society, and the Muncie Public Library through a grant from the Institute for Museum and Library Services.  A complete guide to all Ball State University Libraries’ Archives and Special Collections U.S. Civil War resources is also available.

For more information, contact Ball State University Libraries’ Archives and Special Collections at libarchives@bsu.edu.

Funding for this fellowship program was made possible thanks to a generous grant from the George and Frances Ball Foundation.