HANOVER COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY UNVEILS 2011 SCHEDULE

Program theme will be “Uncovering Hanover’s History” and guests will also enjoy presentations on the Civil War in Hanover County.

HANOVER, VA - The Hanover County Historical Society has announced its program schedule for 2011. The Hanover County Historical Society, Inc. a non-profit, 501 (C)(3) corporation, was formed April 2, 1967. The Society’s mission is "To promote Hanover County's rich history and heritage," which is fulfilled through research, assistance to citizens and organizations, educational programs and advocacy in historical site preservation. The Society works hand in hand with other Hanover associations, such as The Hanover Tavern Foundation, Historic Polegreen Church Foundation, and The Hanover County Black Heritage Society, as well as in statewide and national initiatives.

According to the Society’s Vice President of Programs Christopher K. Peace, the Society’s theme is Uncovering Hanover’s History and War Comes to Hanover. Presentations will include information on past and present archeological research performed here as well as supporting the collaborative efforts of the county’s Sesquicentennial committee commemorating the 150 years since the American Civil War.

Join us on Sunday, March 27 at 2 pm for the Society’s first program of 2011.  We will tour the John L. Thompson Learning Center & Pop’s Country Store Museum which opened this past October in Beaverdam.  Retta Spencer Smith donated the wide-ranging collection of Americana to the Beaverdam Heritage Days Foundation so it could be enjoyed by the public.  Archer Di Peppe, appraiser, will speak about the origins of the collection and how the museum became a reality.  The museum is located in the heart of Beaverdam, just across the tracks from the Depot.  

Date                 Speaker/Topic                                                              Location if determined

June 26            Waite Rawls, CEO Museum of the Confederacy      Hanover Tavern

September 18  TBD                                                                            Hanover Tavern

December 6     Annual dinner meeting                                               Hanover Country Club          

All programs begin at 2 p.m. and the public is always welcome.  The Society will have a member/guest social September 8 at a private historic home in the county.

Membership is open to anyone who is interested in the mission of the Society. As a member you receive The Hanover County Historical Society Bulletin, invitations to regular meetings, and exhibit, program and workshop information. Dues are for one calendar year. Checks are payable to: Hanover County Historical Society, Inc. P.O. Box 91, Hanover VA 23069-0091. Please include your name, address, phone, and email. Individual Memberships are $20.00 and Couples $35.00. For more information on the Society and to become a member visit  www.hanoverhistorical.org and email hanoverhistory@hotmail.com.   

Union Presbyterian Seminary Embarks on Year Long Bicentennial Celebration

 Union Presbyterian Seminary will celebrate 200 years of Forming Leaders and Transforming the Church in 2012. The yearlong bicentennial celebration will begin in September 2011 with convocation ceremonies for both Richmond and Charlotte campuses at Hampden Sydney College, where the seminary originated in 1812. Immediately following, alums and friends of the seminary will bike 75 miles to commemorate the school’s original journey from Hampden Sydney, its current location in Richmond. The move was driven by the seminary’s long standing mission to train modern leaders for the Church and served as a catalyst for the creation of the Ginter Park community.

 “As the seminary looks back, remembers, and reflects, we also prepare,” says Brian Blount, president of Union Presbyterian Seminary. “We want to use this celebration to build momentum for our future work of equipping tomorrow's church leaders. We hope to involve the communities around Richmond and Charlotte, and the entire region that the seminary serves, because we are also commemorating 200 years of generous support from faithful churches and church folk who have nurtured us in this wonderful work.”

 The school’s convocation will kick off an entire slate of events for the coming year inviting participation from alums, laity, clergy and constituents across the country. Highlights to the calendar include community-wide worship services that range in anticipated participation of 4,000 people to smaller church services. There will also be educational events and lectures, reunion gatherings and a fundraising gala with an auction on the Richmond Campus in the newly designed Early Center.

 Board of Trustees Chair William Rikard says, “200 years of educating church leaders is significant cause for great celebration. We hope all members of the Union community will join our celebrations to affirm our marvelous history, but also, to recognize our continuing responsibilities to the future of God’s church.”

 Since 1812, Union Presbyterian Seminary, formerly Union Theological Seminary and Presbyterian School of Christian Education, (Union-PSCE) has embraced a vision to form leaders and transform the church. The seminary serves a diverse student body at campuses in Richmond, Virginia, and Charlotte, North Carolina. Its Extended Campus Program offers students a graduate level education that combines on-line learning with intensive periods of study on campus.

UPSem, Lily Foundation.

POLEGREEN FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES-- AP Lesson plans

Educational outreach is key priority for 2011

Hanover, VA – The Historic Polegreen Church Foundation unveils its lineup of first class lesson plans on its website www.historicpolegreen.org/resources. The AP plan is the latest in a series of educational resources dedicated to educating our youth about the founding principles of a fledgling nation. It is designed to not only connect students to the constitutional underpinnings of the first amendment, but to also provide examples of supreme court  cases that have further protected Americans’ right to freedom of religion. Previous plans were designed by a local public school teacher in Hanover County. This advanced placement plan will further allow students to use primary source documents and active learning to explore the issues of religious freedom and the rights secured by the First Amendment.  Each plan is designed to assist teachers in covering a number of Government and Civics Standards of Learning (SOL) objectives while engaging students and stimulating discussion. 

“We’re excited to be able to work with June Lehman of St. Catherine’s School to add this AP plan to our resources available for teachers in Virginia, “said Dr. Farrah Stone Graham is an Assistant Professor in the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University.  Dr. Graham is the Educational Outreach consultant assisting the Foundation with its effort and  also leads the Foundation’s Educational Advisory Council which includes experts in public and private school education.

Education Advisory Council
Dr. Mathias Bergman Professor of History -- Randolph-Macon College
Dr. William Bosher Director of Commonwealth Education Policy Institute  
Jenny Cote Historical Author -- Atlanta, Georgia
Mark Greenough Supervisor and Historian -- Virginia State Capitol
Jennifer Hurst Statewide Education Coordinator -- Preservation Virginia
June Lehman AP History Educator -- St. Catherine's School
Kay Peninger Patrick Henry Committee -- St. John's Church Foundation
Nora Wheeler Lead Social Studies Specialist -- Hanover County Public Schools
Dr. Jamelle Wilson Assistant Superintendent of Institutional Leadership -- Hanover County Public Schools

In addition to teaching courses in public opinion and Public Administration, Dr. Graham also works in the Center for Public Policy where she helps to design, analyze, and report on public opinion surveys covering a range of topics, including the Commonwealth Poll, the Commonwealth Education Poll and the Life Sciences Poll.  She received her BA in Government from the College of William and Mary and her Masters of Public Administration and Ph.D. in Public Policy from Virginia Commonwealth University. 

The Foundation’s Vision Statement asserts that by 2018, the 275th Anniversary of the founding of Polegreen Church, the Foundation will be recognized for its leadership in the historic interpretation of civil and religious freedom in Colonial Virginia through preservation of the site, community outreach and educational programs. Its mission is to preserve the historic Polegreen Church site and commemorate the struggle for civil and religious freedom in Colonial Virginia by Rev. Samuel Davies and the Hanover Dissenters. For more information on the Foundation and access to its lesson plans please visit: www.historicpolegreen.org/resources.