Spring Symposium

Spring Symposium

Past Spring Symposiums

Spring Symposium: Advancing Black History Education in New Hampshire

A Premier Annual Gathering for Educators, Scholars, and Change-Makers

Each spring, the Black Heritage Trail of NH hosted a Spring Symposium, a flagship educational event designed to empower educators with the tools, knowledge, and perspectives necessary to effectively integrate African American history into their curriculum, with a focus on New Hampshire’s often overlooked Black heritage.  Program highlights included interactive workshops, expert panel discussions, and keynote addresses.

Although BHTNH no longer produces the Spring Symposium, its influence endures. It laid the groundwork for current BHTNH programs like the Elinor Williams Hooker Tea Talks and the Black New England Conference, both of which continue the tradition of public scholarship, community empowerment, and education through truth. 

Past Spring Symposium

2017 - Mapping the Underground Railroad: The Black Past Remembered and Reclaimed in New Hampshire

Presenters:

Joel Gill
Dennis Robinson
John Hodgson
JerriAnne Boggis
Dr Cheryl O. LaRoche, Mapping the Underground Railroad: The Geography of Resistance

2018 - Myth, Reality & Mapping the Underground Railroad

Presenters:

Maria Madison, President of the Bod Robins House Museum, Concord, MA
Lynn Clark, Former Director of the Indian Museum, Warner, NH
L’Merchie Frazier, Director of Education and Interpretation, Museum of African American History, Boston, MA
Jane Williamson, Director Emerita for Rokeby Museum, Ferrisburg, VT
Maria Madison as Ellen Garrison Jackson Dr. Cheryl LaRoche, Department of American Studies, University of Maryland, College Park

2019 - Emancipation & the 13th Amendment: the Legacy of Enslavement

Presenters:

Angela Matthews, BHTNH Sankofa Scholar & Tour Guide
Dr Dottie Morris, Keene State College
Christle Rawlins-Jackson, Beacon Hill Scholars
James DeWolf Perry, The Tracing Center