The League of Women Voters of Litchfield County and the Litchfield Historical Society continue their partner lecture series by welcoming Dr. Richard H. Hersh for Public Education: The New Battlefield for Educating Democratic Citizens in Controversial Times. The Lecture will be held over Zoom on Sunday, February 20th, 2022, at 3:00 PM. To Register for free, visit www.litchfieldhistoricalsociety.org/calendar or, email registration [at] litchfieldhistoricalsociety.org.
Public education is increasingly a political football with governors, legislatures, teacher unions, local school boards, and community members vying to exert influence over schools. Criticism of administrators, teachers, and school boards is now a common occurrence sometimes tearing local communities apart.
To address these issues is Dr. Richard Hersh, Lecturer in the Education Studies Program at Yale University and Guilford CT School Board of Education member. Hersh offers a unique perspective by way of his 360-degree experience as a former high-school social studies teacher, professor of education, teacher trainer, consultant to school systems, college and university administrator, and author of many books and articles regarding the nature of effective schooling, teaching, and learning.
Dr. Hersh will touch base on the evolving goals of public education and education debates over the past century and define where curriculum control lies. Importantly, he will discuss why he believes education in America is failing to adequately prepare citizens to step up as civil participants in our democracy and what we can do about it.
Richard Hersh received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Political Science and History from Syracuse University and an ED.D. from Boston University. He has served in a variety of education roles including Director of The Center for Moral Development at Harvard University and President of Hobart and William Smith Colleges and Trinity College (Hartford). His most recent book, “We’re Losing Our Minds: Rethinking American Higher Education” (co-authored with Richard Keeling, 2012) was the subject of his interview on the Colbert Report.
This lecture is part of a partnership series between the Litchfield Historical Society and the League of Women Voters of Litchfield County. The League of Women Voters of Litchfield County is a grassroots, nonpartisan political organization of women and men.
The lecture will be presented over Zoom and registration is required. To Register for free visit www.litchfieldhistoricalsociety.org/calendar or, email registration [at] litchfieldhistoricalsociety.org.
For more information about the Litchfield Historical Society or other programs and events, please visit www.litchfieldhistoricalsociety.org or call (860) 567-4501.
