The Navajo, Hopi, Apache, and Tohono O’odham are among the 22 federally recognized Native American tribes indigenous to Arizona. Come learn about “Arizona’s Indigenous Roots” via this place-based excursion that explores the cultures and traditions of Arizona’s ancestral and current native communities. First stop is the Huhugam Heritage Center on the Gila River Indian Community reservation. This modern cultural center houses a state-of-the-art collection of artifacts reflective of the Akimel O’odham and Pee Posh tribes, as well as archaeological treasures of their Huhugam ancestors (also known as the Hohokam). Next stop is the Heard Museum of Phoenix, recognized internationally for the quality of its traditional and contemporary American Indian Art collections. Following a docent-led tour of the “Native People in the Southwest” exhibit, participants are free to explore the “Away From Home: American Indian Boarding School Stories” exhibition or any of the Heard’s other world class galleries. Those interested in shopping for authentic American Indian art, jewelry, or gifts can visit the Heard Museum Shop. Enjoy lunch on your own in the Courtyard Café.
A self-proclaimed “geofanatic” with 30+ years in education, Jeannine Kuropatkin teaches World History/Geography and Holocaust Studies at Red Mountain High School in Mesa, Arizona. As a coach for the Model UN Team and as the campus liaison with both the Sister Cities Mesa, Youth Ambassador Exchange Program and Global Ties Arizona, Jeannine promotes student awareness of global connections as well as opportunities for citizen diplomacy and travel abroad. Participation in two Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad (Morocco and Indonesia) and teacher fellowships in Japan, Mexico, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Bahrain, UAE, Qatar, and the US Territories (Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands), have allowed Jeannine to share authentic cultural experiences in the classroom and at teacher workshops. An avid curriculum writer, Jeannine’s Geography and History lessons are published on websites such as PBS Learning Media, Arizona Geographic Alliance, University of Arizona’s Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Fred T Korematsu Institute, GeoCivics Project, as well as in the journal, “The Geography Teacher.” Jeannine actively embraces leadership roles in Social Studies Education, serving as the current Vice President of the Arizona Council for the Social Studies (ACSS), long-standing Teacher Consultant with the Arizona Geographic Alliance (AzGA), and member of the Holocaust Education Advisory Committee for the Arizona Jewish Historical Society. Jeannine has received the NCGE Distinguished Teaching Award, Herff-Jones/Nystrom & NCGE Lesson Plan Award, and NCGE/CRAM Award for Exemplary Classroom Lesson. She is also a three-time recipient of the Great Moments in Teaching Social Studies Award, as well as the Isidore Starr Distinguished Social Studies Teacher Award from the Arizona Council of Social Studies. Jeannine was selected for the City of Mesa, Martin Luther King Jr. “Educator of the Year" Award.
