“Shakespeare and Digital Storytelling” is a two-week summer institute for 25 English teachers of grades 9-12, sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). The theme of “translation,” as a means to contextualize Shakespeare’s art and to construct contemporary meaning, underpins the institute, which will be offered as a residential program on the campus of Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia, in the summer of 2022.
It will be taught by an interdisciplinary team composed of a Project Director in English Education and Theater, a Professor of English and Shakespearean scholar, a Professor of Art, and an Associate Professor of History, supported by a consultant digital curator, an experienced theater educator, and four accomplished K-12 teachers. The institute will guide participants in an in-depth study of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Hamlet, and The Taming of the Shrew, exploring the plays’ folk and fairy tales roots, as well as 21st-century approaches to teaching Shakespeare, including digital storytelling (DST).
Dates of Institute: July 11-22, 2022
Location: Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia (a few miles from Atlanta)
Application deadline: March 1, 2022, at 5PM (EST)
Notification of Application Status: March 25, 2022
Acceptance Notification (from selected participants): April 8, 2022
Depending on public-health guidelines related to COVID-19, plans for a residential offering are subject to change.
Participants receive a stipend of $2200 to assist with expenses of attending the institute. For those choosing to reside on the campus of Agnes Scott College, housing costs will be deducted from the stipend.
Note: Agnes Scott College requires COVID-19 vaccinations for on-campus visitors and masks to be worn in all indoor spaces. Accepted participants will be required to show proof of vaccination.
Send inquiries about the institute to the institute director, Dr. Toby Emert, at temert@agnesscott.edu.
Watch the site for updates as we move closer to the application deadline.
NEH Summer Seminars and Institutes allow K-12 educators an opportunity to enrich and revitalize their teaching through the study of humanities topics that bear upon K-12 education. Participants receive a certificate upon completion of the program, but the programs are not intended to duplicate graduate-level courses.
Each institute allows 25 to 36 participants to study a humanities topic with a team of experienced scholars. Project leaders and participants mutually explore connections between scholarship and teaching, and some time is provided for work on individual or collaborative projects.
The NEH expects and promotes an ethos of civility in its institute programming and has developed a set of guidelines for participants.
The Shakespeare and Digital Storytelling Summer Institute for Teachers has been made possible by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
EEO Statement: Endowment programs do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or age. For further information, write to the Equal Opportunity Officer, National Endowment for the Humanities, 400 7th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20024. TDD: 202-606-8282 (this is a special telephone device for the Deaf).
