School & District Programs | Facing History & Ourselves
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School & District Programs

Our industry-leading programs help improve academic outcomes, increase student engagement, and strengthen school culture.

Our programs are designed and led by experienced former school leaders and teachers and based on nearly 50 years of data about student learning and engagement.

School & District Programs

Facing History’s proven approach is both academically rigorous and emotionally engaging, and provides standards-aligned lessons that promote civic skills, prosocial behavior and academic success. 

Our school and district programs integrate social and emotional education, civic education, and help build equitable learning environments. Facing History is the first high school program to receive SELect designation from CASEL indicating our program demonstrates evidence of effectiveness at improving student outcomes at the highest level, supports students’ social and emotional growth through all five competencies, and offers multi-year programming. 

Whether you are seeking innovative and research-backed teaching materials or looking for a time-tested professional learning partner for your staff, we have a program that will fit your needs. 

Curriculum Partnerships and Professional Development

Our industry-leading curricula has been shown to improve academic skills and engagement, increase civic attitudes and awareness, and strengthen social and emotional skills in students. We currently offer subject-specific curriculum partnership engagements that include full access to our resources designed for use in US History, World History, humanities, social studies, civics, and English Language Arts courses. Each partnership also includes hands-on implementation training and professional development for all staff who will be using our materials. 

Social Studies

  • Following Facing History’s unique age-appropriate methodology, Holocaust and Human Behavior examines the challenging history of the Holocaust and prompts reflection on our world today. With this partnership we introduce educators to our seminal case study, Holocaust and Human Behavior, and support them in implementing it alongside existing World History, Humanities, and Social Studies curricula. Integrating this curriculum helps students develop as empathetic and critical thinkers, who understand their role in sustaining democracy and upholding democratic values.
  • With this partnership we introduce educators to our modular and adaptable US History Curriculum Collection which includes units, C3-style inquiries, and updated case studies — and support them in implementing them alongside your current US History curriculum and texts. By integrating our materials and approach to US History, educators will strengthen students' knowledge and understanding of our complex history while empowering students to find meaningful connections between the past and their lives today.

English Language Arts (ELA)

  • With this partnership educators have access to our modular and adaptable ELA collections which include multimodal texts, engaging activities, classroom-ready student handouts, and teaching strategies — and support for implementing collections alongside existing ELA curricula. By integrating our materials and approach to ELA, educators help students explore the complexity of identity, process texts through a critical and ethical lens, and develop a sense of civic agency.
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Want to learn more?

Interested in how to engage with Facing History in your school or district? Fill out a quick interest form to get more information about our curricular and professional development offerings and subscribe to Resources for Leaders - a monthly email from Facing History CEO Desmond K. Blackburn.

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Adult Learning for Building Engaging, Inclusive, and Caring Schools 

In addition to our subject matter specific curriculum partnerships and training we also offer professional learning designed to develop educator competencies, strengthen morale and school culture, and inspire educators. These sessions are designed to be implemented by whole schools or districts and are appropriate for all school staff regardless of subject area or grade level. 

Teaching for Equity & Justice (districtwide or schools)

Our Teaching for Equity & Justice (TEJ) program is an invitation to join us in working to build an educational culture where everyone can thrive. The offering begins with a focus on deepening faculty understanding of the mindsets and practices needed to achieve educational equity and justice and centers the importance of mitigating and dismantling the historical inequities that exist within school structures.

Teaching for Democracy: Activating Student Voice & Agency

This offering explores the interdisciplinary nature of civics and how all educators can directly promote democracy and student voice in the school setting. It will provide educators, regardless of subject matter taught, with resources to develop civic knowledge, skills, and dispositions that support the development of student voice, to increase students’s civic engagement and agency. 

Building Inclusive Educator Teams and a Community of Care

Successful social-emotional learning (SEL) implementation depends on how well staff work together to facilitate SEL instruction, foster a positive school community, and model social and emotional competence. Endorsed by Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL), Facing History can provide schools and districts with targeted professional learning, resources, and support to develop a reflective, inclusive, and more equitable adult and student community. This offering introduces educators and administrators to new strategies and tools they can use to foster SEL competencies among both teachers and students.

Facing History professional development is solutions oriented...staff come away able to think through how you might improve outcomes for kids.
— Emily Feltes – Principal

Interested in experiencing the Facing History professional learning approach first hand?

Bring a small team to our next Explorations workshop

Developing Strong School Leadership

Over the last few years we’ve heard from teachers, administrators, and other education leaders that building a safe and inclusive school community is a top-priority. But we know that for most school leaders juggling the day-in and day-out demands can make this important work feel daunting. 

Join our cost-free monthly community of practice sessions, called Building Belonging, which are designed to help principals, assistant principals, heads of school and other school leaders intentionally hold time to work through current challenges and develop a community of practice with other leaders like them from around the country. 

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