07 Aug Presentation Time

I have just finished week 7 of my 10 week internship and it went by so fast! This week I was set to present the work I have done on the Harriet Tubman Jr. Ranger booklet. The booklet will contain information and activities related to the future Harriet Tubman National Monument site. My job is to include the necessary and accurate historical information that children and young adults can learn from. I want to make Harriet Tubman’s courageous life and her contributions to the Underground Railroad relevant and interesting to kids today. The process is tougher than I thought. Slavery is a very heavy and mature theme so its difficult to include the harsh facts but include it in a way that will be understandable yet appropriate for certain ages. I had to present to the Regional Manager and Superintendant of the Tubman site  along with my supervisor and Rodrigo and Jenny from the Hispanic Access Foundation in Cambridge, MD.  I was really nervous about having accurate and useful information in my presentation but the presentation went really well. Better than I expected. It was an opportunity to really discuss the history of slavery and helped us come to a common agreement on how to approach the Jr. Ranger booklet. We have been taught a lot of lies or sugar coated history, while in grade school and it needs change. Fortunately, history classes are moving closer to including all histories in the American experience but there is still a long way to go. My only hope is that what I create, opens kids eyes to the actual events that took place. How respecting and accepting all people is what this world needs to better itself. That hate and discrimination does not lead to progress but to destruction. Despite not being able to create an actual Jr. Ranger layout in Adobe and having to input my ideas into a powerpoint presentation, it has been a great experience. I’m learning more everyday and I also feel I’m developing the skills I’ll need for a career in public history.

                My supervisor and I also put the 72 boxes that need organizing into numerical order. They very kind and helpful people at the Museum Resource Center also transferred all 72 boxes from the first floor to the second floor where we will be working.             They also set up a nice workspace for my supervisor and I.