Barbara Mathews, director of the Deerfield Teacher's Center of the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, presents the association's first annual Franklin Award for scholarship in history to Kevin Sweeney, professor of history at Amherst College, during a history seminar at Westfield State College. WESTFIELD - The first annual Franklin Award to honor scholarship in history was presented to Kevin Sweeney, professor of history at Amherst College, on Benjamin Franklin's birthday, Jan. 17, during a seminar on history education at Westfield State College. The Deerfield (Mass.) Teachers' Center of the Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association (PVMA) established the award to honor scholars to who exemplify those traits and talents evident in the life and writings of Benjamin Franklin, after whom Franklin County, home of the Deerfield Teachers' Center was named. "Professor Sweeney has devoted many, many hours to sharing his expertise and passion for American history with hundreds of teachers throughout our region," said Barbara Mathews, director of the Deerfield Teacher's Center. "He has been generous with his time and scholarship in the creation of PVMA's two award-winning web sites, American Centuries and Raid on Deerfield: The Many Stories of 1704." PVMA is partnering with area school districts and the Center for Teacher Education and Research (CENTER) at Westfield State College in the American Promises teacher education program. It is a three-year initiative to improve history education funded by a nearly $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to the Westfield Public Schools in collaboration with CENTER, the PVMA and five other area school districts. Sweeney was keynote speaker at the program's Westfield State seminar, speaking on "Material Culture and American Society on the Eve of the Revolution." | ||||||
