New England History Teachers Association

Welcome to the online home of the New England History Teachers Association (NEHTA). Founded in 1897, the NEHTA is the nation's oldest association of history and social studies teachers. Explore our website for more information on our organization and various resources for teaching social studies. Visit us often to stay informed on the latest in both history and education. 

The NEHTA supports the recent statement from the OAH as they offered criticism of the executive order "Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling." We firmly stand beside the OAH, AHA, and numerous other member societies and institutions in helping to continue advocating for the importance of a diverse history education. The full statement from the OAH can be read here.

The NEHTA supports the OAH and the AHA as they criticized the incorrect application of historical knowledge on abortion in the determination of Dobbs v Jackson Women’s Health Organization. As purveyors of history education, we must support the use of historical information in an accurate manner and engage in activities that hold accountable organizations who choose to sidestep facts even in the highest offices of our government.

On June 24, 2022, in the case of Dobbs vs. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Constitution does not confer the right to abortion, overturning nearly 50 years of precedent established by both Roe v. Wade (1973) and Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey (1992).

On Thursday, July 7th, OAH held a webinar examining the Dobbs v. Jackson decision in historical perspective. Erika Lee, OAH President and University of Minnesota, hosted guests Gillian Frank, cohost of Sexing History, Felicia Kornbluh, University of Vermont, and Stacie Taranto, Ramapo College of New Jersey, in a conversation about the history leading to Dobbs and how the ruling could potentially impact other past SCOTUS decisions. The video is available here and the full joint statement from the OAH and AHA can be read here.

2025 UPDATES

• The Colonial Society of Massachusetts is currently accepting applications for their upcoming summer seminar on Using Colonial Society Sources in Early American History. It will run from June 24-26 and the deadline to apply is April 28. Please see the following document for more details: Summer Seminar 2025 Info

• The NEHTA honors the late Joseph Harrington, former chief editor of the New England Journal of History, with the following tribute by Linda Morse (current president of NEHTA):

“Too often, people assessing world developments are playing checkers, and do not have the background to play chess, a different name for diplomacy.” Joseph F. Harrington, epilogue From Truman to Obama 

On Tuesday, December 3, 2024, Professor Joseph F. Harrington died at the home of his daughter in Virginia after a difficult year. Joe was born in Brookline, Massachusetts in October of 1934. He earned his undergraduate degree in History from Boston College; he also met his late wife Brenda Crowley Harrington while attending Boston College. After college, Joe served as a Captain in the United States Army. He later attended Georgetown University, earning both his Master’s degree and his Ph.D by 1971. He wrote many scholarly books and articles focused on diplomacy and relationships between American Presidents and their Secretaries of State. 

I first met Professor Joseph Harrington at Framingham State University where he taught history for 37 years, including serving as the History Department Chair for years while there. In the 1990s, I was a student in Professor Harrington’s graduate class on French history. I remember at the beginning of the semester Professor Harrington said, “we won’t stay the whole three hours because I talk really fast, so you’ll be able to leave a little early.” He had an enormous wealth of information that I greatly admired. Professor Harrington held high standards and through his actions inspired his students to value the importance of knowledge.

In addition to being a Professor in History at Framingham State University, Joe became active with the New England History Teachers Association through its publication, The New England Journal of History. In the Winter of 1990, Professor Harrington published his first article with the journal, “Romanian-American Relations 1956-90.”  In the Winter of 1992, Joe became an Associate Editor, quickly followed by becoming the Issue Editor in the Winter of 1994. By the Spring of 1995, Joe assumed the role of Managing Editor, taking over for James Weland of Bentley College. In 2003, Professor Harrington was the recipient of the New England History Teachers Association Kidger Award which recognizes “excellence in teaching, research, writing, and/or service to the history profession.” Professor Harrington served as the chief editor of The New England Journal of History for over 17 years until the fall of 2012.

Years later, I grew to know Professor Harrington in a new way – by applying to assume Joe’s role as the Editor of the New England Journal of History in 2012.  I was a neophyte when it came to running a journal, but Professor Harrington expressed confidence that I could manage it. Over the years, Joe has been incredibly supportive of me and the changes that I made to the journal as it grew in new directions. His compliments and questions on why I acted as I did made me a more effective editor. 

We spoke on the phone many times after he moved to live with his daughter in Virginia. I know he deeply enjoyed spending time with his grandchildren and family. He spoke with love and pride of his family and his children’s accomplishments. 

On a more personal note, he shared his insights with me on how to navigate the loss of a spouse after I became widowed which helped me to keep going forward. I imagine the years he spent donating his time in various capacities such as the College Academy and College Gate, teaching CCD, serving on his town’s school committee, and developing CYO programs with his wife Brenda, made Joe an even more compassionate and understanding person. Joe’s actions throughout his life remind us how to live – pursue your dreams, embrace your community, share your talents with the world, and live life fully. For more details on his contributions to his community outside of the journal, I have placed a link to his formal obituary below. 

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/bostonglobe/name/joseph-harrington-obituary?id=56934380

2024 UPDATES

• September 12, 2024 - The NEHTA highly recommends a few upcoming workshops for social studies teachers...

Mary Beth Norton - 1774 and All That:  Reflections on a Long Year of Revolution

September 19, 2024 - 7 p.m. @ The Concord Museum

Sponsor:  The Society of Colonial Wars and The Colonial Society

Coordinator:  Charlie Newhall

Cost = FREE! For more info, see:  https://concordmuseum.org/event/1774-and-all-that/

Followed by:

Teaching Historical Thinking and Research Skills in the Classroom

Educator History Workshop with Mary Beth Norton

September 20, 2024 - 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. @ The Colonial Society of Massachusetts, Beacon Hill, Boston

Sponsor:  The Society of Colonial Wars and The Colonial Society

Coordinators:  Charlie Newhall and Gorman Lee

Cost = FREE! For more info, contact:  Charlie Newhall CLNewhall@gmail.com

Massachusetts Provincial Congress:  Exploring Democracy - Our Rights and Our Responsibilities

October 11, 2024, 11 a.m. - 4 p.m. @ First Parish Concord and the Wright Tavern

For more info, contact:  Tom@WrightTavern.org

Organized by Bob Gross (The Minutemen and Their World and The Transcendentalists historian) and with keynote speaker Woody Holton - one of the best Revolution era historians)

https://www.masscouncil.org/come-to-the-2024-massachusetts-provincial-congress-on-october-11th-concord-ma/

• August 26, 2024 - List of board members updated to include new members and leadership positions.

• April 22, 2024 - The Stanford History Education Group (SHEG) is now known as the Digital Inquiry Group (DIG), and this change is now reflected on the NEHTA website's Historical Thinking Resources page.

• March 28, 2024 - NEHTA is proud to help promote and co-sponsor some upcoming webinars on the Chagos Islands. Please see the following flyers for more details: Webinar Series Flyer and Webinar #3 Flyer

• March 11, 2024 - The USS Massachusetts Commissioning Committee has a great opportunity for middle and high school social studies students. Please see their message below for more details...

Dear Massachusetts Middle and High School Teachers,

We are reaching out to you on behalf of the USS MASSACHUSETTS Commissioning Committee, with an exciting opportunity for your students to engage in a unique educational experience centered around Massachusetts history and its significant role in the development of the United States Navy.

The USS MASSACHUSETTS naval submarine is scheduled for commissioning in 2025, marking a historic moment for our state and our nation. To celebrate this occasion, the Commissioning Committee is organizing an essay contest for middle and high school students across the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

We invite you to encourage your students to research and write an essay on a chosen event in Massachusetts history or an aspect of the role of Massachusetts in the development of the United States Navy. The essay can focus on an individual, an event or moment, a specific ship, a policy, or a place at a particular historical time.

Twelve winners will be selected, and they will have the unique opportunity to be invited to the commissioning ceremony in Boston, MA. Additionally, their essays will be framed and permanently installed within the submarine, creating a lasting legacy. Winners will also be invited to the post-reception ceremony to celebrate their achievements.

The deadline for essay submissions is June 15, 2024. More details, including submission guidelines, can be found on our website at https://www.ussmassachusetts.org/essay. We encourage you to share this information with your students, inspiring them to explore the rich history of Massachusetts and the vital role it played in shaping the U.S. Navy.

Thank you for your support in promoting this educational opportunity. We look forward to receiving insightful and creative essays from your students.

Best regards,

USS MASSACHUSETTS Commissioning Committee

2023 UPDATES

• November 8, 2023 - Board members updated to reflect the most recent changes. Awards have been updated to reflect upcoming opportunities. Membership page to join or renew has been updated to the most current pricing options.

• January 30, 2023 - Avon Old Farms is hosting a conference titled "Teaching in the 21st Century" that "aims to make sense of the twenty-first century, contribute to scholarship about it, affect how it’s taught, and historicize events over its first two decades. Attendance is open to teachers, academics, school administrators, and policy makers" (para. 1). Learn more and register here.

2022 UPDATES

• July 12, 2022 - Information on the first annual Vera Laska Book Award was added to the Awards page. Please navigate to the Awards page to find out more about this new award opportunity.

• April 10, 2022 - On Saturday, April 23 ASCH (The Association for the Study of Connecticut History) will host a full-day virtual conference on the topic of "Teaching History with Courage." Secondary school teachers, university instructors, pre-service teachers, and others interested in the teaching of history and controversies related to this topic are all invited to attend. High school and college students are also invited to attend.

  • Keynote sessions will be presented by Professor David Blight from Yale University, who will speak on the main theme of the conference and by Professor Manisha Sinha from the University of Connecticut, who will speak on the controversies surrounding the teaching of slavery.

  • A panel discussion by educators on the topic of "Teaching History with Courage" will follow Dr. Blight's presentation. This will be followed by a panel on "Accessing Digital Resources in History." An early afternoon panel will focus on "Fostering Inclusivity in History and Social Studies Education," with separate sessions on "African History in Global and Local Contexts," "Hispanic and Latino Voices in the Curriculum and Archives," and "LGBTQ History from Connecticut's Past and Present." A special part of the "Hispanic and Latino Voices" panel will be a presentation by Dr. Paul Ortiz from the University of Florida.

  • The final panel of the afternoon will be on "Disrupting White Supremacy in American History." Nataliya Braginsky, the 2021 Gilder Lehrman National American History Teacher of the Year, will be part of this panel.

  • To register for this conference, please click https://www.eventbrite.com/e/asch-2022-spring-conference-teaching-history-with-courage-tickets-294219146387 

    • The cost to attend the conference is $15 for non members, $10 for members, and free for students and presenters.

  • To see the full schedule for the conference please visit https://asch-cthistory.org/ 

2021 UPDATES

• March 19, 2021 - The NEHTA is proud to announce the recipients of its annual awards for 2020...

  • • Dr. Annette Gordon-Reed (Carl M. Loeb University Professor at Harvard) - Kidger University Award

    • Mr. William G. Jordan (Teacher, Philips Exeter Academy) - Kidger Secondary Award

    • Ms. Rena Klein (Board Member, NEHTA) - Hicks-Kennedy Award

      • For more information on the criteria for these awards, and how to nominate future candidates, be sure to visit the "Awards" section of our website.

      • Please click here to read a brief bio on the 2020 Kidger Award winners.