National Council for Geographic Education

Climate & Community: How Local Knowledge and Power Asymmetries Influence Climate Adaptations in Sudan and the American Southwest
2025-03-19 19:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York) | Webinar
Overview
Many communities across the globe are facing severe disruptions from climate-change. Large-scale projects like solar farms and seawalls often dominate the headlines, but bottom-up, community-based adaptations to climate emergencies are just as critical. Local mobilizations drawing on traditional knowledge and bonds of solidarity can help populations across the globe to mitigate the harsh consequences of climate change. Drawing on their research in Sudan and in the American Southwest, these scholars examine how power relations, local knowledge, communal ties, and legacies of violence shape and inform responses to climate emergencies.
Audience Focus
All grade levels
Meet the Presenter
Malathe Ahmed, Ph.D., will shed light on the traditional flood management system used by the community of Tuti Island in Khartoum, Sudan, known as the Taya system. This traditional approach plays a crucial role in minimizing vulnerabilities and enhancing the community’s ability to manage the impacts of climate change, as well as to cope with other crises, including armed conflict.
Lucas Belury will focus on the Rio Grande Valley at the southern tip of the Texas-Mexico border. The Rio Grande Valley is a cultural heartland that contains thousands of informal colonia communities vulnerable to flooding. This presentation will explore how colonia communities come together to survive through collaboration, neighborliness, and generosity.
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Experiential Learning
2025-03-25 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
In this webinar we will travel through time and understanding to examine the ideas of Experiential Learning: What is it? Who defined it? Where do I find it? How do I apply it in my teaching? We will examine two examples that the speaker has been involved in and how they might help you develop Experiential Learning in your classrooms. The speaker will share a little bit about his two books on Experiential Learning in Geography, and finally we wrap things up with a Q/A time.
Audience Focus
All Grade Levels
Meet the Presenter

Jonathan Wessell
Grand Valley State University
MA in Geography, Western Michigan University

Jonathan Wessell is an instructor of Geography for the past 26 years. He is currently at Grand Valley State University and Glen Oaks Community College in Michigan. Mr. Wessell has been actively involved over the past 12 years with the AAG and served his colleagues for a decade in the Geography Education Specialty Group on the executive committee for the past 8 years. He was active in starting a poster competition and advanced the connection with AP Human Geography teacher by providing a day long PD opportunity during the AAG Annual Meetings. For several years he has remained active in chairing sessions on professional development in Geography and Experiential Learning in Geography. These activities have led Mr. Wessell to being the Chief editor of two books with his colleagues on Experiential Learning in Geography (2021 and 2025). Mr. Wessell has also served as a reviewer for the journals: Professional Geographer and The Geography Teacher. Recently, He was elected to the Board of Directors foe NCGE, and is currently working on a Young Scholar Research Symposium. Mr. Wessell plans to continue his research efforts in Experiential Learning and his work with pre-service teachers. He will do this through teaching and leading experiential opportunities around the world.
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The AP Exam: Tips and Tricks to Prepare Students
2025-06-03 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
In partnership with College Board, this webinar will provide strategies and ideas to help prepare your students for the AP exam. There will be McQ strategies, review of the FRQ task verbs and an overview of the exam itself.
Audience Focus
AP Human Geography and High School
Meet the Presenter
Charlotte Haney has been teaching AP Human Geography at the #1 Ranked high school in Texas. She serves as Human Geography District Lead for Houston Independent School District, the 4th largest district in the United States. She has had the pleasure of working with the team developing a project based curriculum for AP Human Geography and is always excited to work with teachers to support their students’ success.
Laura Massa was born and raised in Argentina where she got her university degree in Geography from the University of Buenos Aires. She worked at the United Nations Development Program assisting the Project Director in research and data analysis, and taught at the University of Buenos Aires and at many private schools. In 2002 she earned a Master’s degree in Latin American Studies at FIU/LACC. She teaches World History, AP Human Geography and Women’s Studies at Palmer Trinity School where she also taught Latin American History.
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APHG Bellringers: How to Apply in the Classroom
2025-08-14 19:00 - 20:00
Summary
Tips and Tricks from classroom teachers on how to use the Bell Ringers in your AP Human Geography class. Bellringers can also be used in any on-level World Geography course.
About the Presenters
Laura Kmetz teaches APHG in Dallas, TX at Booker T. Washington High School, where she is the Social Studies Department Chair. She is the author of the NCGE Bellringers, a consultant for College Board, and a leader at the AP Reading. Laura loves engaging students in exploring our complex world and helping them figure out what they can do to make the world a better place.

Ryan Conway teaches at Glen Allen High School in Richmond, VA and is starting his 24th year as a classroom teacher. He is also the Director of the Center for Education and Human Development, a specialty center/magnet program within Henrico County. He has taught World History, US History, AP Government, AP Psychology, and for the first time last year AP Human Geography. Ryan loves to learn and teach new content and was excited about the opportunity to teach 9th graders APHG. It was a challenging but rewarding year of learning together with his students!

Carla Ingram teaches AP Human Geography, AP World History, and Honors/Standard World History at South Caldwell High School in Hudson, NC. She loves reading and traveling both of which help her liven up her classroom! Just this summer she made it to her 50th state, Rhode Island!

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Population: What charts, Graphs, and Diagrams can tell us!
2025-09-17 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
In this webinar you will be introduced to four charts, graphs and diagrams to discuss the majority of population content. Jonathan Wessell will apply his 27 years experience at the college level in Cultural and World Regional Geography when discussing POPULATION. His favorite, which you will find-out, is the Demographic Transition. His students always gasp when they learn that he experienced a 16 week course on just this diagram. There will be time for questions and you are encouraged to bring questions.
Audience Focus
All grade levels
Meet the Presenter
Jonathan Wessell is an instructor of Geography for the past 26 years. He is currently at Grand Valley State University and Glen Oaks Community College in Michigan. Mr. Wessell has been actively involved over the past 12 years with the AAG and served his colleagues for a decade in the Geography Education Specialty Group on the executive committee for the past 8 years. He was active in starting a poster competition and advanced the connection with AP Human Geography teacher by providing a day long PD opportunity during the AAG Annual Meetings. For several years he has remained active in chairing sessions on professional development in Geography and Experiential Learning in Geography. These activities have led Mr. Wessell to being the Chief editor of two books with his colleagues on Experiential Learning in Geography (2021 and 2025). Mr. Wessell has also served as a reviewer for the journals: Professional Geographer and The Geography Teacher. Recently, He was elected to the Board of Directors foe NCGE, and is currently working on a Young Scholar Research Symposium. Mr. Wessell plans to continue his research efforts in Experiential Learning and his work with pre-service teachers. He will do this through teaching and leading experiential opportunities around the world.
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QGIS - An Online Mapping Option For All
2025-10-01 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
QGIS is a free open-source mapping tool. This webinar will dive into its key elements and how to apply it in a geography classroom.
Audience Focus
All grade levels
Meet the Presenter
Jen Mapes is Assistant Professor of Geography at Kent State University, where she directs the Community Geography Lab, which makes maps for and with the local community. She’s the author of The New American Small Town: Lessons for Sustainable Urban Futures. Jen is a former (& future?) APHG reader.

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Religion & Government in the Middle East: Election season
2025-10-29 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
This session offers teachers resources to explore the role of religion in the governments of Lebanon, Israel, Egypt, and Iran. By comparing these countries to the United States, participants will gain insights into global religious and political diversity. By examining primary source foundational documents from each country, teachers can then support student inquiry in understanding these complex landscapes.
Audience Focus
All grade levels
Meet the Presenter
Erika Lawrey is a veteran educator with 29 years of experience, Erika Lowery is an accomplished educator with a comprehensive background in various educational capacities. Her professional journey has included instruction in middle and high school geography(all levels), supervision of secondary social studies programs, and teaching elementary social studies methods at Baylor University. Currently, she provides professional development to teachers across the southern region as an educator for the Institute for Curriculum Services. Ms. Lowery’s dedication and excellence have been recognized with several prestigious accolades, including the National Council for Geographic Education Distinguished Teaching Achievement award in 2013, her selection as the Texas Social Studies Supervisor of the Year in 2022, and her service on the 2022 World Geography TEKS revision workgroup in Texas.
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Teaching Students How to be Successful on FRQs
2025-11-05 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
Join us as we discuss the methods and strategies for introducing and teaching students how to be successful on FRQ for the APHG exam.
Audience Focus
APHG, High School, Middle School
Meet the Presenters
Kenneth H Keller is a retired AP Human Geography teacher at George Walton Comprehensive High School in Marietta, GA., and taught AP Human Geography from its inception in 2000. Ken has attended every AP Human Geography Reading since 2002, where he has worked in multiple capacities from reader to Question leader. He has been teaching AP Human Geography weeklong summer institutes and one-day workshops for teachers since 2004 and was the 2004 recipient of a National Council for Geographic Education Distinguished Teaching award. Ken also taught as an adjunct professor of Geography for five years at Western Connecticut State University, Ken is a past member of the AP Human Geography Test Development Committee (2006-2010) and served as President of the National Council for Geographic Education during the year 2019-2020. He is also Past-President of the Connecticut Council of Social Studies. where he worked to promote social studies education at the state level.
Ken is also the co-author of BFW’s Human Geography for the AP Course which is now in its second edition along with its teacher’s edition. Ken is also one of three co-founders of iScore5 LLC, an AP test prep app for smart devices. Ken and his wife, Lisa, moved from Danbury, CT. to Georgia in 2013, and though they prefer the beautiful Georgia weather, they brought their New Yorker roots (and Mets caps) with them.
Tracie Truax began her teaching career in the Chicago suburb of St. Charles 19 years ago. As a National Board Certified teacher, she currently teaches one section of AP Human Geography while serving as an instructional support coach. In her coaching role, Tracie supports educators in implementing effective instructional strategies and fostering student success. Additionally, as a member of the district’s Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment Team for social studies, Tracie collaborated with colleagues to design the Geographic Foundations course, ensuring that all freshmen build essential geographic thinking skills from the start of their high school journey. Tracie has also been an AP Human Geography reader since 2017. As a reader, she learned invaluable skills for teaching and preparing her students to be successful FRQ writers. Finally, Tracie is an avid traveler. She believes that geography should happen inside and outside the classroom. In the summer of 2024, she led a student trip to Costa Rica designed to bring human geography concepts to life. Tracie loves sharing both her passion and enthusiasm for geography with others!
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Our World In Data
2025-11-12 15:00 - 16:00
Overview
Poverty, disease, hunger, climate change, war, existential risks, and inequality: the world faces many great and terrifying problems. It is these large problems that our work at Our World in Data focuses on. The goal of our work is to make this knowledge accessible and understandable to empower those working to build a better world. Join us for a webinar that will show how this free resource can be used by educators to gather current data and reports on many topics globally. While not a source for lesson plans, it is a source to create lessons and activities in which the students can interact with the data themselves. **If you have questions that you would like to ask the presenter, please email them to Julie julie@ncge.org **There will be time for Q & A during the webinar.
Audience Focus
All Grade Levels
Meet the Presenters
Dr. Charlie Giattino is the Communications & Outreach Manager at Our World in Data. He joined OWID in 2020 and has worked across the team: initially joining as a researcher, later moving to the operations team, and now leading communications. He completed his Ph.D. in cognitive neuroscience at Duke University. Charlie is originally from Texas and now based in London.

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Encountering Colonial Legacies & Spaces of Possibility along the Anza National Historic Trail
2025-11-20 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
As thousands of geographers are preparing to gather in San Francisco in a few months, this is an opportunity to explore and understand how this city came into existence and how historic places can serve as sites of engagement and even reconciliation. The 250th anniversary of the Anza Colonizing Expedition of 1775-76 provides a point in time for reflection and re-examination of the historical geography of the Americas. The expedition followed a 1,900-mile route north and west from present day Sonora that took settlers to the frontier of the Spanish Empire and traversed the homelands of numerous indigenous peoples. Learn more about the expedition and how the route is remembered and commemorated by the U.S. National Park Service and the indigenous nations that withstood profound impacts of invasion, settlement, and environmental change and continue to shape the future of the lands along the trail.
Audience Focus
Speakers will share free information and resources appropriate for the education of diverse audiences. Recommended for geographers, educators, and anyone interested in taking a journey into the historical geography of the Americas.
Meet the Presenters
Thomas Herman
Research Fellow, San Diego State Univ. Geography Dept.
California Geographic Alliance
National Council for Geographic Education

Gail E. Chehak
Community & Partner Relations Director
American Indigenous Tourism Association, Inc.

Christopher Bentley
Interpretation, Education, and Volunteer Program Manager
Juan Bautista de Anza National Historic Trail
National Park Service

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Commemorating and Learning from the 250th Anniversary of the Anza Expedition of 1775-76 Webinar Series
2026-01-07 19:00 - 20:30
Overview
Join the California Geographic Alliance and the National Park Services as they commemorate the 250th Anniversary of the Anza Expedition of 1775-76 with this professional learning series featuring geographic and global perspectives on history.
SESSION 2 (ON THE JOURNEY): JANUARY 7, 2026, 4-5:30 pm Centering Difference in the Anza Expedition and Early California Few citizens of New Spain were eager to join an expedition to settle an unknown and potentially hazardous land, but some saw an opportunity on the frontier. Learn how Afro-Latinos and independent women were a major part of the Anza Expedition and the early development of California.
SESSION 3 (ARRIVING): MARCH 25, 2026, 4-5:30 pm
Legacies of the Expedition and the Making of Place in California, 1776 to 2026 What are the outcomes of the Anza Expedition? A settlement called Yerba Buena, a settler population that develops its own cultural and political identities, a sequence of transitions in control of the territory resulting in California’s incorporation into the United States. The people and the trail they followed continue to be relevant in many ways.
Audience Focus
For educators and students in Grades 4 and higher. Special relevance to 5th, 8th, and Ethnic Studies, but all are welcome to join.
How to Join
Pre-registration is required. Find out more and register here

GeoCivics - The American Electoral System
2026-01-14 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
Learning about elections and representation by reading court cases and discussing state statutes is an excellent foundation for understanding how the American electoral system functions. But what will capture students’ attention so that they are prepared to participate in civic life no matter where they are living?
This webinar will explore how students in a high school civics class incorporated historic information about population change, prioritizing electoral district criteria, descriptions of their own communities, and geospatial technology tools for constructing state congressional districts to gain additional insight into how electoral districting works. They have a better sense of the differences between redistricting and gerrymandering, why it is important to have transparency in the redistricting process, and how they can contribute by advocating for their community’s needs. Theobald at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs will share GeoCivics resources and provide background on the teachers’ perspective as they guided students through hands-on and online activities as part of students’ study of civics.
Audience Focus
High School
Meet the Presenter
Rebecca Theobald is an Associate Research Professor in the Geography and Environmental Studies Department at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs. She directs GeoCivics, asking geographic questions to address electoral redistricting and emphasizing the role geospatial technology plays in drawing districts. From 2008 through 2018, she served as coordinator of the Colorado Geographic Alliance, part of National Geographic Network of Alliances for Geographic Education, providing professional development for teachers across Colorado. She edited National Council for Geographic Education’s journal, “The Geography Teacher”, from 2016 to 2024.
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Revolutionary Crossroads Field Experience
2026-01-21 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
Travel to the Capital Region of New York June 21 – 28, 2026 to experience, reflect, and commemorate 250 years of US independence in one of the most dynamic and critical geographic areas in American and world history. Fort Ticonderoga, Lake George, Fort William Henry, Lake Champlain, Saratoga, Fort Orange (Albany), and the Mohawk Valley contain some of the most significant sites and situations that shaped the U.S. This 7-day experience will provide participants with the opportunity to visit historic sites and museums while working with scholars and archivists to consider and reflect on the significance of our country’s semiquincentennial through a geographic and multi-perspective lens.
Audience Focus
All grade levels
Meet the Presenter
Chris Bunin teaches social studies and Geospatial Technologies at Albemarle High School, and am an adjunct geography professor for the Virginia Community College System and the University of Virginia . From 2006 – 2012 he directed the Teacher Scholars Program for the Virginia Experiment and America on the World Stage Teaching American History Projects. In this role he coordinated and implemented inquiry-based experiential professional development opportunities for local classroom teachers.

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2892 Miles To Go
2026-01-28 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
There are 2892 miles across the contiguous United States. Each of these miles symbolizes stories of resilience and innovation. Through mapped routes, StoryMapping, and place-based inquiry, 2892 helps learners reexamine local histories, amplify unheard voices, and create powerful digital stories that deepen our a collective understanding of the past and present.
Audience Focus
All grade levels
Meet the Presenter
Anita Palmer is a past middle and high school technology and social studies teacher who is the CEO of the “woman-owned business” GISetc started in 1999 to provide geospatial PD, curriculum, and support for educators and students. Author, Esri partner/educator, NatGeo Explorer, and lover of 2892 Miles to Go!

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Beyond the Hype: Critical AI Literacy for Geography & Social Studies Educators
2026-02-04 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
The rapid emergence of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) has sparked both optimism and unease within education. For geography and the broader social sciences, GenAI tools such as ChatGPT promise efficiencies in curriculum design, data analysis, and feedback, yet they also produce errors, false citations, and cultural oversimplifications. The use of large language models poses ethical dilemmas that risk undermining core disciplinary practices in the social sciences. This session situates geography educators within this tension, emphasizing the need for AI and data literacy that is critical rather than uncritical. Drawing on recent research in geography and social studies education, I propose a framework of “error typologies” that reveal how GenAI can reshape knowledge production and interpretation of curricular content. The session will engage participants in considering ways to integrate AI that fosters critical inquiry and civic literacy, without outsourcing essential human judgment to machines. Rather than treating GenAI as a shortcut for assessment or content delivery, educators are invited to explore how it can serve as a tool for critique, revealing questions of bias, representation, and the implications for its use in the social studies classroom. Attendees will leave with some practical strategies for guiding classrooms to critically evaluate GenAI outputs and apply disciplinary thinking to AI-generated claims. Bring your questions and comments!
Audience Focus
All grade levels
Meet the Presenter
Samantha Serrano is a 21-year veteran high school social studies teacher with primary responsibilities in geography and civics. A self-proclaimed technosketic, she encourages pause before abrupt implementation regarding educational technology. As a teacher, she loves making new lessons for her students, as a researcher, her interests include geography education, equity and access, critical theory, and educational technology, and as a mom, she has newfound interests in waterparks, K-Pop Demon Hunters, and jumpzones.
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GIS for Good - Using GIS for Community Impact
2026-03-04 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
GIS For Good Initiative is a national initiative that empowers youth and communities through geospatial technology, storytelling, and leadership development. In alignment with our RomoGIS motto of “it always starts with the people,” this program uses GIS and drone education to turn data into action. Through hands-on learning, community mapping, and personal storytelling, GIS for Good develops the next generation of leaders who use technology to create local change. Students earn certifications, gain workforce experience, and build solutions for real-world issues by combining technical skills with their community expertise to drive social impact. Our GIS For Good program has supported community-led efforts from disaster response in St. Louis to student-led innovation in Detroit, Nashville, and The Bronx.
Audience Focus
All grade levels
Meet the Presenter
Frank Romo is a geospatial leader, educator, and community advocate dedicated to using GIS technology to drive meaningful change. As CEO of RomoGIS, he has pioneered the use of mapping and data visualization to tackle critical social challenges, from food insecurity to disaster recovery and public safety. With a background in community organizing, urban planning, and emergency response, Frank has spent his career equipping individuals, organizations, and local governments with the tools needed to make data driven decisions that foster stronger, more resilient communities.
Beyond his technical expertise, Frank is a passionate educator who empowers the next generation of change-makers through hands-on community mapping workshops and STEM education programs across the country. His GIS For Good work spans a wide range of impact-driven projects that foster community and workforce development opportunities by ensuring that technology skills and resources are accessible and actionable for all. Through his leadership at RomoGIS, Frank continues to push the boundaries of how geospatial technologies can be leveraged to enhance workforce development efforts, drive economic opportunity, and community change.
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MapMaker - A Two-Part Series
2026-03-11 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
Join us for this two-part webinar (March 11 & April 1) that will highlight the steps needed to get started using MapMaker in your classroom and for your students. You will be able to follow along with the webinars to create an activity you can use in your classroom. Both parts of the webinar will be recorded for you to review. You do not need a log in to use MapMaker. The pace will allow you to ask questions along the way as you create along with us.
Audience Focus
All grade levels
Meet the Presenter
Tom Baker is an education outreach manager at Esri, Inc., where he develops, manages, and assesses a wide range of educational projects. Hi portfolio includes curriculum design and evaluation, educational marketing, technical development, educational research, and teacher training. His work spans higher education, K12, and informal. He has a great interest in universal design and learning for all.

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Redlining: Omaha and Chicago
2026-03-18 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
Redlining has economic, social and political consequences. This webinar will offer views from two US cities on how they have changed their spaces and look to the future.
Audience Focus
Middle School, High School, APHG
Meet the Presenter
Jeanne Shin-Cooper has been a public high school educator for twenty years. Over the course of her career, she has taught multiple disciplines in the social sciences in addition to work within the field of EL. She is currently a consultant and exam reader for AP Human Geography and is a National Board Certified Teacher. She received her Masters in Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University and her Masters in Geography through the EDGE Program at University of Oregon. Currently, she serves on the Educator Advisory Committee for Harvard’s Religion and Public Life in conjunction with teaching College World Religions Dual Credit. Most recently, she was invited as a keynote speaker for Harvard University’s Global Studies Outreach Workshop.

Matthew Pierson is the Associate Director of the Nebraska Council on Economic Education. He is a 13-year veteran of the classroom, spending that time teaching social studies and economics at Omaha Bryan High School. He holds Master’s degrees in both History Education and Economic Education. He was a co-author of NAEE Silver

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Commemorating and Learning from the 250th Anniversary of the Anza Expedition of 1775-76 Webinar Series
2026-03-25 19:00 - 20:30
Overview
Join the California Geographic Alliance and the National Park Services as they commemorate the 250th Anniversary of the Anza Expedition of 1775-76 with this professional learning series featuring geographic and global perspectives on history.
SESSION 3 (ARRIVING): MARCH 25, 2026, 4:00-5:30 pm (PT)/7:00 – 8:30 pm (ET)
Legacies of the Expedition and the Making of Place in California, 1776 to 2026. What are the outcomes of the Anza Expedition? A settlement called Yerba Buena, a settler population that develops its own cultural and political identities, a sequence of transitions in control of the territory resulting in California’s incorporation into the United States. The people and the trail they followed continue to be relevant in many ways.
Audience Focus
For educators and students in Grades 4 and higher. Special relevance to 5th, 8th, and Ethnic Studies, but all are welcome to join.
How to Join
Pre-registration is required. Find out more and register here

MapMaker - A Two-Part Series
2026-04-01 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
Join us for Part II of this two-part webinar series that will highlight the steps needed to get started using MapMaker in your classroom and for your students. You will be able to follow along with the webinars to create an activity you can use in your classroom. Both parts of the webinar will be recorded for you to review. You do not need a log in to use MapMaker. The pace will allow you to ask questions along the way as you create along with us.
Audience Focus
All grade levels
Meet the Presenter
Tom Baker is an education outreach manager at Esri, Inc., where he develops, manages, and assesses a wide range of educational projects. Hi portfolio includes curriculum design and evaluation, educational marketing, technical development, educational research, and teacher training. His work spans higher education, K12, and informal. He has a great interest in universal design and learning for all.

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The AP Exam - Tips and Tricks to Prepare Students
2026-04-15 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
In partnership with College Board, this webinar will provide strategies and ideas to help prepare your students for the AP exam. There will be McQ strategies, review of the FRQ task verbs and an overview of the exam itself.
Audience Focus
APHG
Meet the Presenter
Debra Coram Troxell is a National Board Certified Teacher from Winston-Salem, NC. She teaches AP Human Geography and International Relations at West Forsyth High School. Debra is an AP Human Geography exam reader, an AP PBL Consultant, and serves on the editorial board of The Geography Teacher journal. Jeanne

Jeanne Shin-Cooper has been a public high school educator for twenty years. Over the course of her career, she has taught multiple disciplines in the social sciences in addition to work within the field of EL. She is currently a consultant and exam reader for AP Human Geography and is a National Board Certified Teacher. She received her Masters in Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University and her Masters in Geography through the EDGE Program at University of Oregon. Currently, she serves on the Educator Advisory Committee for Harvard’s Religion and Public Life in conjunction with teaching College World Religions Dual Credit. Most recently, she was invited as a keynote speaker for Harvard University’s Global Studies Outreach Workshop.
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Esri StoryMaps - Part I
2026-04-22 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
ArcGIS StoryMaps have emerged as one of the most powerful and popular classroom tools from Esri in K12 education. Join us for this new, two-part series as we help you find, use, and then create StoryMaps. The first, hands-on webinar will focus on finding and using existing (or pre-built) StoryMaps to enhance your curriculum – across subject areas and grade bands. We’ll also show you how to quickly setup a free public account as we set the stage for creating your own StoryMaps.
Audience Focus
All grade levels
Meet the Presenter
Tom Baker is an education outreach manager at Esri, Inc., where he develops, manages, and assesses a wide range of educational projects. Hi portfolio includes curriculum design and evaluation, educational marketing, technical development, educational research, and teacher training. His work spans higher education, K12, and informal. He has a great interest in universal design and learning for all.

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Esri StoryMaps - Part II
2026-04-29 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
ArcGIS StoryMaps have emerged as one of the most powerful and popular classroom tools from Esri in K12 education. Join us for the second part of this two-part series as we help you find, use, and then create StoryMaps.
Part-two of this hands-on StoryMap webinar series focuses on creating your own StoryMaps and sharing them with students. This session will include an overview of most of the tools available to StoryMap creators – and time to practice during the webinar.
Audience Focus
All grade levels
Meet the Presenter
Tom Baker is an education outreach manager at Esri, Inc., where he develops, manages, and assesses a wide range of educational projects. Hi portfolio includes curriculum design and evaluation, educational marketing, technical development, educational research, and teacher training. His work spans higher education, K12, and informal. He has a great interest in universal design and learning for all.

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A Taste of JAHM: The Jewish American Experience
2026-05-13 19:00 - 20:00
Overview
Join us as we celebrate 20 years of Jewish American Heritage Month (JAHM)!
That’s right! It’s been 2 decades since President George W. Bush announced that May 2006 would be considered Jewish American Heritage Month. A month dedicated to celebrating the peoplehood, history, and contributions of Jewish Americans – from the perseverance shown in the face of initial hardships upon arrival to their lasting impact on everything from medicine to civil rights. Explore why heritage months foster belonging and historical accuracy. Our Jewish American history content serves as a master toolkit for discussing any complex identity. To wrap up, you receive seven “JAHM-sized” mini-lessons designed for seamless integration into your May classroom schedule.
Audience Focus
All Grade Levels
Meet the Presenter
Erika Lowery is a veteran educator with 29 years of experience and an accomplished educator with a comprehensive background in various educational capacities. Her professional journey has included instruction in middle and high school geography(all levels), supervision of secondary social studies programs, and teaching elementary social studies methods at Baylor University. Currently, she provides professional development to teachers across the southern region as an educator for the Institute for Curriculum Services. Ms. Lowery’s dedication and excellence have been recognized with several prestigious accolades, including the National Council for Geographic Education Distinguished Teaching Achievement award in 2013, her selection as the Texas Social Studies Supervisor of the Year in 2022, and her service on the 2022 World Geography TEKS revision workgroup in Texas.
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Publishing with NCGE
2026-05-21 18:00 - 19:00
Overview
Have a great lesson idea or trying something new in teaching geography that you would like to share? Consider publishing with the Journal of Geography or The Geography Teacher. This webinar will focus on the process, possible topics, and advantages of publishing with NCGE.
Audience Focus
All grade levels
Meet the Presenter
Kyle Tredinnick
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