Alabama Humanities Foundation Hosts WWI Professional Development Program for Educators
By T.C. McLemore, Programs Director, Alabama Humanities Foundation
April 3, 2017
On Wednesday, March 29, the Alabama Humanities Foundation convened a teacher workshop to mark the centennial of the United States’ declaration of war in 1917. 26 teachers, archivists, and university scholars from around Alabama gathered at the Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for the Arts and Humanities at Pebble Hill at Auburn University for a full day of presentations, discussions, and resource sharing dedicated to Alabama’s role in World War I.
After a welcome and introduction from AHF’s programs director T.C. McLemore and Draughon Center director Mark Wilson, Martin Olliff, editor of The Great War in the Heart of Dixie: Alabama During World War I, director of the Wiregrass Archives, and associate professor of history at Troy University—Dothan, laid the foundation for the day by introducing the war’s lasting effects on Alabama through infrastructure, urbanization, and the failure of the promises of racial equality to be enjoyed by African American soldiers returning from war.
Ruth Truss, professor of History and chair of the department of Behavioral and Social Sciences at the University of 
Montevallo, built upon Olliff’s presentation in her discussion of Alabama’s military contributions, including the remarkable efforts of the 167th (Alabama) Infantry Regiment, a National Guard unit of the 42nd “Rainbow” Division, in holding the front line for an unbroken 110 days on Croix Rouge Farm—northeast of Paris.
Jeff Jakeman, retired professor of history at Auburn University and current president of the Alabama Historical Association, talked on the impression of the war on public memory and contrasted Alabamians’ rejection of corporate remembrance—instead opting for local memorials—with the collective mourning and memorializing found throughout Europe.
After a preview of the Draughon Center’s traveling exhibit, Remembering the Great War: Alabama and World War One, Kirk Curnutt, professor and chair of the English department at Troy University, discussed early 20th century romanticism associated with war and the shift that followed WWI and its public exposure of the brutality of total war. Kirk identified this disenchantment throughout the later works of popular writers such as Hemmingway, Dos Passos, and Fitzgerald.
Wes Garmon, curriculum specialist with the Alabama Department of Archives and History, and Merredith Sears, chair of history at Handley High School, wrapped up the workshop with tools teachers could immediately use. Wes shared troves of resources including a guide to digital archives and primary source exercises to build student historical competency. Merredith shared her students’ exploration of local history and their research of Randolph County residents who served during the war.
One 9th grade teacher from Auburn Junior High remarked of the full day, “I appreciated how knowledgeable the professors were and I thought it was a great use of the time to focus on content. I felt that all the topics we covered were useful to our curriculum as 9th grade teachers; I especially liked the cross-curricular aspect of studying WWI Literature and thought students would benefit from understanding the trend of literature before and after WWI. I found the local history aspect and ties to Alabama both interesting and useful – it will make WWI more engaging and meaningful to my students and it was information I hadn’t learned before in WWI classes in college. I was definitely appreciative of all the resources that the State Department of Archives & History showed us – the databases of WWI primary sources and the Gold Star database are especially useful to teachers like me who want to incorporate more primary sources into our curriculum.”
