North Hills Middle School educator Joe Welch has been
selected as the 2018 Pennsylvania History Teacher of the Year by the Gilder
Lehrman Institute of American History. He is now one of 53 finalists for the
organization’s National History Teacher of the Year Award that will be
announced in October.Welch, a Grade 8 social studies teacher, was chosen by a
panel of teachers, administrators and scholars from throughout the state for
the honor for his achievements in American history education. The award is
present annually by the institute, which is the nation’s leading organization
dedicated to K-12 American history education.
With his state-level award, he will receive a $1,000 cash
award, an archive of books and historical resources for the North Hills Middle
School library, attendance at a 2019 Gilder Lehrman teacher seminar and
recognition at a state ceremony.
Inaugurated in 2004, the History Teacher of the Year Award
highlights the crucial importance of history education by honoring exceptional
American history teachers from elementary school through high school. The award
honors one K-12 teacher from each state, the District of Columbia, Department
of Defense schools and U.S. Territories.
In his classroom, Welch is known for creative and innovative
projects that bring American history alive for his students. His philosophy for teaching history, which
was included in the application process, is based on students creating stories
and publishing content. His students have the opportunity to create animated
videos, remix songs to analyze an era of American history, create illustrated
children’s books to explain primary sources, intertwine augmented reality to
create gallery walks of presidential administrations, all while integrating the
resources afforded by North Hills’ Project Connect 1:1 iPad initiative.
Welch’s students were recognized in 2017 for their Building
Bridges: Oral History to Connect Communities and Generations project. Welch,
along with middle school English teacher Vicki Truchan, oversaw the student
publishing of four volumes of community oral history narratives and student
analysis that are now available for free on iBooks. This project was recognized
with the Association for Middle Level Education National Community Engagement
Award in 2017. Recently, Mr. Welch has
been instrumental in launching the National History Day program at North Hills.
In conjunction with fellow social studies teacher Larry Dorenkamp, he hosted a
community Vietnam War event in cooperation with WQED and PBS, sparking student
interest in POW research and a special screening of Ken Burns’ documentary “The
Vietnam War.”
In addition to this honor, Welch also is an Apple
Distinguished Educator (ADE) and lead PBS Digital Innovator for Pennsylvania.
As an ADE, he is part of a global community of education leaders recognized
their work with Apple technology in and out of the classroom, who advise Apple
on integrating technology as well as serving as content creators for
Apple.
Welch is a recognized presenter who has shared his expertise
and knowledge with other educators at various state and national education
events. He has presented at the International Society for Technology in
Education (ISTE) conference on multiple occasions, the National Council for the
Social Studies annual conference and the Association for Middle Level Education
national conference in addition to state conferences including the AIU’s Social
Studies Symposium and Pennsylvania Educational Technology Expo and Conference.
About the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
Founded in 1994 by philanthropists Richard Gilder and Lewis
E. Lehrman, the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History is the nation’s
leading organization dedicated to K-12 American history education. The
Institute’s mission is to promote the knowledge and understanding of American
history through educational programs and resources. Drawing on the 65,000
documents in the Gilder Lehrman Collection and an extensive network of eminent
historians, the Institute provides teachers, students, and the general public
with direct access to unique primary source materials. The Institute’s programs
have been recognized by awards from the White House, the National Endowment for
the Humanities, and the Organization of American Historians.