The Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes received a grant for $6,800 from the Kansas Arts Commission.! The grant will be used to honor three unsung heroes from the Japanese Internment Camps during WWII. Those unsung heroes are Mitsuye Endo, Aiko Herzig-Yoshinaga, and Minoru Yasui. The grant will allow for a historian presentation about the camps, a community book read of George Takei’s “The Called Us Enemy,” a public showing of the movie “Betrayed: Surviving an American Concentration Camp,” and a performance by the St. Louis Osuwa Taiko Japanese Drummers in the Lowell Milken Park at the Center.

Kansas Arts Commission: The Kansas Arts Commission (KAC) is dedicated to promoting, supporting, and expanding Kansas’ creative industries and enriching communities through arts and culture.

About the Lowell Milken Center: The Lowell Milken Center is a non-profit 501 (c) (3) that works with students and educators within a range of diverse academic disciplines, to develop projects focused on unsung heroes. Our mission is to share those projects and the stories of these unsung heroes with our community through our museum at the Lowell Milken Center and through special cultural events.

The Lowell Milken Center (LMC) for Unsung Heroes in Fort Scott, Kansas has awarded its 2024 National Fellowship to 12 educators. As part of their week-long experience in Fort Scott, the six fellows for June 23 – 28 were given the key to the city on Tuesday, June 25^th, by Jackson Tough, Tourism Director. (Five other Fellows were in Fort Scott last week.) Upon the presentation of the keys, Tourism Director Jackson Tough said, “From Gordon Parks to the history of the Fort and the National Cemetery, along with this amazing place, the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes, we realize that Fort Scott is the home of heroes. Now we add you, the Lowell Milken Fellows to that list of heroes. You influence so many young people. You mold them, inspire them, and give them direction. We truly welcome you to our community and as a small token of our appreciation, we present each of you with a key to the city of Fort Scott.”

The Fellows honored this week were Sarah Espinal from New York, Elisabeth “Bibba” Kahn from Vermont, Leah Lawrence from Missouri, Ashley Libben from Indiana, Matthew Mayeske from Kansas, and Ann Marie Vanneste from Canada. LMC Director Norm Conard praised these outstanding individuals, saying, “We are so honored to be able to network and collaborate with these exemplary educators and provide them with an opportunity to reflect, reenergize, and strategize with each other as they seek to find new ways to inspire their students.”

Every summer, the Lowell Milken Center for Unsung Heroes awards its Fellowship to national and international award-winning educators from America and around the world. As National LMC Fellows, they deepen their understanding of Unsung Heroes and project-based learning in preparation for developing Unsung Heroes projects with their students. They also learn the stories of powerful role models who have helped to change the world and can be life-changing examples for students today. Along with the time spent deepening their professional skills at the LMC, the Fellows enjoy visiting the Fort Scott area.

The Lowell Milken Center (LMC) for Unsung Heroes in Fort Scott, Kansas, an international educational non-profit, has awarded its prestigious Fellowship.

The LMC Fellowship is a merit-based award for educators of all disciplines who value the importance of teaching respect and understanding through project-based learning. The Center selects exemplary teachers from the United States and around the world who will collaborate on projects that discover, develop, and communicate the stories of Unsung Heroes in history.

Those in Fort Scott from June 23 to 28

Sarah Espinal

Sarah Espinal, a 2023 Discovery Award Winner, is a social studies teacher at Jericho Middle School and High School in New York. Since Sarah is bilingual, she has been able to interact more deeply with students. She wants her students to be deeply informed about their learning and encourages historical thinking. Her emphasis on the importance of identifying the bias and credibility of sources helps her students learn to make informed decisions in life.

LMC Executive Director Norm Conard says, “As an ENL social studies teacher, Sarah has used her fluency in both English and Spanish to interact with a diverse group of students. She has guided them in developing many award-winning National History Day projects. Her outstanding skills in project development will be a welcomed resource for the 2024 LMC Fellowship.”

Bibba Kahn

Bibba Kahn, a middle school French and Spanish educator in Montpelier, is the 2020 Vermont Teacher of the Year. She believes that learning a new language begins with valuing people from different cultures and backgrounds who may or may not be similar. To value every individual is a skill Bibba feels is essential in our world today. She gives her students many real-world experiences with language and bases her success as an educator on the success of her students’ learning.

LMC Executive Director Norm Conard says, “Bibba’s love for learning drives her enthusiasm to share knowledge with her students. Through her global travel and teaching experiences, she seeks to reach students of all diversities, valuing their cultural differences. Our 2024 team of Fellows will be fortunate to learn much from Bibba’s vast knowledge base.”

Leah Lawrence

Leah Lawrence, a middle school English Language Arts educator in St. Charles, MO, is the 2023 Missouri Milken Educator. Whether it’s the use of Play-Doh relating to the steps of the writing process or flyswatters that “swat” away errors, Leah’s creative instructional strategies keep her students engaged in their learning and foster their desire to reach their educational goals. Her adaptability in the classroom helps every level of learner have the opportunity to meet with success.

LMC Executive Director Norm Conard says, “Leah is a gifted educator whose creatively designed lessons pique her students’ interest and motivate them to reach their educational goals. Our staff and the team of 2024 Fellows look forward to the innovative ideas and engaging instructional strategies she has to share.”

Ashley LIbben

Ashley Libben, a 2016 U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum Fellow, is a middle school English Language Arts educator in Ligonier, IN. Libben’s use of project-based learning with her eighth-grade students reached a more profound level when her language arts instruction included the teaching of The Diary of Anne Frank. Her students’ interest in the Holocaust grew and ignited questions for which she didn’t have answers. Their interest led her to research answers to their questions and to do more profound research for her own growth in knowledge.

LMC Executive Director Norm Conard says, “Ashley’s use of a project-based learning curriculum helps her students become adept in research and writing skills while making personal connections with the historical figures whose stories they share. I am confident her experiences will inspire our 2024 team of Fellows.”

Matthew Mayeske

Matthew Mayeske, a 2023 Kansas Milken Educator, is a high school social studies teacher in Gardner, KS. His world history and geography classes come alive for his ninth and tenth-grade students through the integration of real-world scenarios with collaborative, inquiry-based instruction. In yearlong roleplaying games, students create characters and participate in simulation activities. They can also immerse themselves in a French Revolution simulation, a strategy-style conflict activity to illustrate WWI diplomacy or a study of interactive maps using GIS technology. Every strategy transforms his classes into vibrant learning experiences.

LMC Executive Director Norm Conard says, “Matthew’s students benefit from his unique ability to transform his social studies classes into dynamic experiences with hands-on learning skills. These experiences can be a springboard to his students’ development of Unsung Hero projects and models for our 2024 Fellows in their own classrooms.”

Kelly Steffen

Kelly Steffen, a 2019 Gilder Lehrman Iowa History Teacher of the Year, is a high school social studies teacher in Vinton, IA. She is a master at engaging her students through relevance and the use of primary sources, encouraging students to draw their conclusions about history’s impact on their lives. Kelly hopes students learn that history can help them as citizens to make informed decisions in today’s world. This summer, Kelly will also attend the NEH Heart Mountain Seminar to learn more about the effects of Japanese Internment/Incarceration, another powerful resource for her students.

LMC Executive Director Norm Conard says, “Kelly’s students are well-versed in the vision of our country’s founders. She emphasizes the use of primary sources for her students’ hands-on projects that focus on the people who shaped our nation. Our 2024 Fellows will be able to use her insight to help their students develop informative Unsung Hero projects.”

Ann Marie Vanneste

Ann Marie Vanneste, a Civics, Careers, Religion, and Learning Strategies educator from Kanata, Ontario, was awarded the prestigious 2023 Canada’s Prime Minister’s Award for Teaching Excellence National Recipient. She was the recipient  of the 2023 Director of Education Award in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the Ottawa Catholic School Board, Canada.  Ann Marie is also a 2024 Women Of Courage Award recipient, presented by The Emmett Till Legacy Foundation. Devoted to inclusion in education, she wants students to know that someone is rooting for them and their success. She helps her students cultivate pride in their individual cultural places in the world and helps them identify their unique cultural strengths.

LMC Executive Director Norm Conard says, “Ann Marie’s enthusiasm, along with a teaching approach dedicated to inclusion, has made her students realize their valuable places in this world. All of them are encouraged to reach high levels of learning. The motivating and inspiring projects her students have experienced will be a catalyst for ideas and collaboration with this year’s team of LMC Fellows.”

While in Fort Scott, LMC Fellows gain knowledge, educational resources, and support in helping students cultivate a passion for learning by creating projects that initiate positive change. Fellows will be equipped to develop Unsung Heroes projects with their students, applying and evaluating the stories of these role models who have changed the world throughout history.