Exploring South Asia Through Literature: Using Award-Winning Books to Enrich Geography Education
2025-10-18 13:15 - 13:45 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Nebraska
Summary
The South Asia Book Award (SABA) celebrates outstanding literature that authentically portrays the cultures, histories, and lived experiences of South Asians, both in South Asia and across the globe. This session introduces geography educators to the wealth of award-winning books that can enhance students’ understanding of the diverse countries and cultures that make up the South Asian region. Through a curated selection of books, from picture books to young adult novels, participants will discover how to integrate compelling literature into geography curricula to bring South Asia to life in the classroom. Whether you’re teaching about historical events, contemporary cultural issues, or geographical landscapes, these books offer valuable perspectives that will engage students and deepen their global awareness.
Session Focus
Early Childhood/Elementary | Literacy | Geography, Literature, Culture
Conference Room
Nebraska
Meet the Presenter
Julie Wakefield is a retired high school teacher now teaching in the higher education system. She volunteers with the South Asia Book Award Committee to choose books annually that are worthy of recognition. She regularly integrates cultural stories, poetry, literature and other print options into her teaching.

Restricting the Mercator Map Projection Usage in Public School Classrooms
2025-10-18 13:15 - 13:45 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Iowa
Summary
The Nebraska State Legislature passed a law in 2024, prohibiting public school classrooms from using the Mercator map projection, in favor of Gall-Peters and AuthaGraph. Although there are exceptions described in this statute when it is permissible to use projections outside of Gall-Peters and AuthaGraph, it has led to confusion among public school educators. This session will describe how peoples’ mental maps could be shaped by map projections and common map layouts, which could serve as rationale for such a law. In addition, this session will explain how educators facing a ban on the Mercator map projection can still use web GIS and map projections other than Gall-Peters.
Session Focus
Secondary/High School | Curriculum and Instruction | Mercator, Map Projection, Mental Maps
Conference Room
Iowa
Meet the Presenter
Lesli Rawlings is Professor of Geography in the Department of History, Politics, and Geography at Wayne State College (Nebraska). Her research interests include geographic information systems (GIS) applied to study local housing markets, public education issues, and population decline in rural Nebraska. Her teaching interests are GIS and computer mapping, urban geography, economic geography, and world regional geography.

Promoting Critical Perspectives in a Geography Methods Course
2025-10-18 14:00 - 14:30 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Winnebago
Summary
This session shares ongoing efforts by the presenter to promote critical perspectives in a geography methods course for pre-service teachers. This presentation explores how interdisciplinary connections have raised student consciousness about the utility of the field of geography to frame issues of power and inequality. Drawing from decolonial thought, ethnic studies, and media literacy, instruction in this course has centered critical approaches to geography education. More specifically, students have examined the power and politics of naming places/things, Indigenous experiences with colonialism, climate migration, and mis(dis)information about the recent conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza. These critical approaches have resulted in high student engagement and an increased focus on issues of global justice. Supporting data, collected over the past three years, will be shared. Lastly, this session will be planned so that there is time for participants to discuss their thoughts on the presenter’s practices and/or share their own efforts to promote critical perspectives in geographic education.
Session Focus
Higher Education | Curriculum and Instruction | Critical Geography, Media Literacy, Decolonial Pedagogies
Conference Room
Winnebago
Meet the Presenter
Sean Corrigan

Geography Teaching for the Future: Leveraging New Ideas
2025-10-18 14:00 - 14:30 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Lewis
Summary
In a rapidly changing educational world filled with AI, social media, loosening teacher requirements, and curriculum concerns across states, what can we do in geography education to ensure our existence beyond all the unnecessary noise? In this presentation we will share ways to keep geography relevant and get students engaged in the classroom. We will discuss the tools needed to motivate students through the creation of transformational educational experiences. This begins with getting to know who our students are, what they are interested in, and what they aspire to become. Geography is in everything that we do, and what better opportunity than in the classroom to showcase to students all the things they can do with an understanding in geography? We will talk about how to leverage AI and social media to create everlasting learning opportunities that will shape the future generation of geographers! After this, your principal will see the value of investing in geography and in you!
Session Focus
Secondary/High School | Curriculum and Instruction | Pedagogy, Student Motivation, Authentic Learning
Conference Room
Lewis
Meet the Presenters
Joann Zadrozny, PhD. is the senior research associate for the Gilbert M. Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education at Texas State University. Her research agenda involves tracking the status of geography and social studies standards across every state, including analyzing the alignment among national and state geography standards. She also focuses on improving K-12 geography curriculum through the implementation of Powerful Geography, and empowering teachers by leading professional development opportunities with the Texas Alliance for Geographic Education.

Named a top modern-day explorer by Canadian Geographic and a top innovator in education by The Science Coalition, Dr. Aaron Doering is an online learning, design, and adventure-learning pioneer. He has skied, trekked, and dogsledded the most remote regions of the world while delivering unique online learning experiences to students worldwide. Aaron is a laureate of the prestigious Tech Awards that honors innovators applying technology to benefit humanity, a fellow for the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, as well as the International Explorers Club. Aaron’s work and adventure learning projects have been featured on CNN International, the Weather Channel, CBC, CBS, the Wall Street Journal, NPR, and more.

Place Representation and Music Geography: Australia and Midnight Oil
2025-10-18 14:00 - 14:30 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Clark
Summary
This session explores the lyrical content of the music of Midnight Oil, an Australian rock band active for more than 40 years, as a strategy to illuminate the varied political, social, and environmental landscapes of Australia. The band’s lyrics use place names, evocative place description, and Australian vernacular terms to create for the listener an understanding of Australia, that though still limited to the experience of the band themselves, is fuller and more complete than portrayed in much popular culture. A simple mapping exercise of Aboriginal population is included as part of the inquiry. The content of this session follows from a recent paper published in the Journal of Cultural Geography.
Session Focus
Middle School/Junior High | World/International| Music Geography, Australia
Conference Room
Clark
Meet the Presenter
Jerry T. Mitchell is Professor and Chair of the Department of Geography at the University of South Carolina. He holds a BS in History and MA in Geography from Towson University, and a PhD in Geography from the University of South Carolina where he returned to the faculty in 2004 after teaching for several years in Pennsylvania. Jerry’s research has focused on environmental hazards and geography education. He was the coordinator of the South Carolina Geographic Alliance for 17 years, providing geography learning opportunities for more than 40,000 teachers and students. Additionally, he served as the Editor of the Journal of Geography from 2010-2019, was President of the National Council for Geographic Education in 2020, and was awarded the 2022 Gilbert Grosvenor Honors in Geographic Education from the American Association of Geographers.

Food Geography
2025-10-18 14:00 - 14:30 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Nebraska
Summary
Given the complexity of our world today, it’s never too early to introduce students in the elementary grades to geographic thinking. While it’s not unusual for schools to include as part of their cultural programming an experience of “ethnic” foods, the subject of food can be used in a more substantive way, acquainting students with the concepts of place, location, space, scale, pattern and globalization.
This presentation will discuss how the celebration of foods and festivals can be taught in a more geographic way- from production to consumption-in conjunction with award winning picture books focused on the food cultures of East Asia, plus teaching suggestions and resources.
Session Focus
Early Childhood/Elementary | World/international | Foodways, Asia, Picture-books
Conference Room
Nebraska
Meet the Presenter
Nancy Hope, M.Ed., M.F.A., M.A., is the Executive Director of the Freeman Book Awards, which recognizes quality literature for young adults and children in East and Southeast Asia. She lived in Japan for 8+ years, first as a line officer in the United States Navy, and then as a designer and dyer of kimono. Later as the Associate Director of the Kansas Consortium for Teaching about Asia, she promoted international education at the K-12 level.

The Chesapeake Bay Climate Institute: Integrating Climate Literacy into Curriculum
2025-10-18 14:00 - 14:30 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Iowa
Summary
Studies indicate climate literacy remains low across the U.S. K–12 system. Funded by the Virginia and Maryland Geographic Alliances, the Chesapeake Bay Climate Institute has introduced educators to the issue of climate change since 2019. Using America’s Estuary as a place of learning, the immersive multi-day, professional development experience includes expert lectures constructed around the topic of climate change, highlighting the ways in which communities understand, respond, and address climate change. Institute participants utilize the Geo-Inquiry Process, combing a rapidly eroding barrier island and listening to the narratives of local watermen of Tangier Island. This presentation overviews the institute and highlights learning activities designed by participants. Integration is needed in science education, where standards of learning often compartmentalize topics without consideration for how other course material beyond single disciplines.
Session Focus
All Grade Levels | Literacy | Climate Education, Chesapeake Bay, Experiential Learning
Conference Room
Iowa
Meet the Presenter
Dr. Michael Allen is an Associate Professor of Geography at Towson University. He previously served as a co-coordinator of the Virginia Geographic Alliance and Geography Program Director at Old Dominion University. For more than a decade, Dr. Allen has worked with formal and informal K-16 educators to promote geographic understanding and climate literacy. Since 2019, Michael has coordinated the Chesapeake Bay Climate Institute, a multi-day experiential professional development program that uses the Chesapeake Bay watershed as a place of learning, culminating with a field experience on Tangier Island. In 2023, Allen worked at the University of Novi Sad, Serbia as a U.S. Fulbright Scholar, improving cross-cultural climate literacy. Exploring the Balkans, Allen reflects on his experience and highlights future professional development opportunities to explore both the human and environmental landscapes of the region. His local and international experience integrates cultural competence, geospatial technology, scientific understanding, and critical thinking into pedagogical approaches. A physical scientist, Michael has extensive experience working across academic disciplines to bridge mutual understanding between social and natural sciences.

How the Amazon Rainforest connects and supports your classroom curriculum and why it's important to teach about it.
2025-10-18 14:00 - 14:30 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Flannigan
Summary
This engaging workshop explores the vital role of the Amazon and its powerful connections to classroom curriculum at every grade level encompassing subjects as diverse as geography, social studies, science, language arts, math and global citizenship. Educators will discover how the Amazon influences global climate, biodiversity, indigenous cultures, and why its preservation is critical to all of us. Participants will leave with practical strategies and resources to bring the Amazon to life in their classrooms, fostering student awareness about environmental interdependence and encouraging critical thinking about sustainability and global responsibility.
Session Focus
All Grade Levels | Amazon, Educator Travel
Conference Room
Flannigan
Meet the Presenter
Jackie McCann

Omaha Redlining: How the hotel we are in divided Omaha
2025-10-18 14:45 - 15:15 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Flannigan
Summary
This session will cover redlining in Omaha as well as the opportunity for highway diets to reconnect a city. It will cover the economics of redlining in Omaha and how the hotel we are in divided the city. The session will end with an uplifting message of entrepreneurship and how teens across Omaha have worked with history to bring life back to forgotten corridors across the city.
Session Focus
Secondary/High School | Political Geography, Redlining, Transportation
Conference Room
Flannigan
Meet the Presenter

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
Curriculum Award Winning, Entrepreneurship in our Community, The Ethics, Economics, and Social Issues Curriculum, and Beyond the Bet: Economics of Gambling. Matthew has a passion for bringing new and odd resources and topics into economics classrooms and loves inserting his own passions into economics.

Context, Input, and Implementation Challenges on Learning Outcomes in Geography
2025-10-18 14:45 - 15:15 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Winnebago
Summary
Geography has laudable goals that could make students become responsible citizens. However, students’ achievement in geography is generally low, and this is caused by map reading. Previous studies on map reading concentrated largely on teaching strategies with little attention to factors that could hinder effective learning of geography. This study, therefore, investigated self-efficacy and locus of control as predictors of students’ achievement in map reading among secondary school students in Ibadan, Nigeria. A descriptive research design of survey type was adopted for the study. Simple random sampling techniques were adopted to select ten senior secondary schools from Ibadan North and Akinyele Local Government Areas of Oyo state, while a total number of three hundred students participated in the study. The instruments used were validated and reliable.
Results showed that there was a positive relationship between self-efficacy and academic achievement, while locus of control was found to have a negative relationship with academic achievement. It was also found out that achievement in map reading was jointly predicted by self-efficacy and locus of control. Self-efficacy and locus of control influenced secondary school students’ achievement in map reading. Teachers should work on the self-efficacy and locus of control of students.
Session Focus
Secondary/High School | Curriculum and Instruction | Geography, map reading, psychological variables
Conference Room
Winnebago
Meet the Presenter
Peter A. Amosun, Ph.D is a Professor of Social Studies Education and Geography Education at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria. Prof. Amosun’s research interests cut across Social Studies and Civic Education, Environmental Education, Climate Change Education, Geography Education, Internet Crime Prevention, and Curriculum and Instruction. He has made tremendous impact in promoting geography education within and outside the University community through scholarly work with local and international benefits. To his credits are several local and international journal articles, chapters in books and books. Professor Amosun is currently the Director, Centre for General Studies in the University of Ibadan. He was the immediate past Head, Department of Arts and Social Sciences Education, University of Ibadan. He has supervised tens of undergraduate and Postgraduate students. He has acted as external examiners within and outside Nigeria. He has mentored many students who are now occupying strategic places and position in academia both within and outside Nigeria.

How Do We Define Regions?
2025-10-18 14:45 - 15:15 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Lewis
Summary
In this presentation, I demonstrate a mini-lecture and in-class activity I use in my undergraduate World Regional Geography course to introduce students to the concept of a region. On an outline map of U.S. states, they draw the boundaries of “the Southwest” and list physical and/or human characteristics that define the region. They compare their results with those of classmates in a follow-up discussion and learn that the boundaries and characteristics of perceptual regions can vary. This lesson becomes the foundation for asking what characteristics the textbook authors used to draw the boundaries of each world region that we study throughout the course. It challenges students to think about “Why?” rather than just accepting world regional boundaries. The lesson is a thought-provoking way to begin the semester. I have also used it in a high school world geography classroom with similar success
Session Focus
Higher Education | World Geography | Engaging, Strategies
Conference Room
Lewis
Meet the Presenter
Dr. Susan Hume is a Professor in the Department of Geography & GIS at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. She previously taught 9th grade World Geography and 12th Economics and has been an APHG Reader. Susan served on the NCGE Board of Directors as VP for Research from 2012-2014, President in 2015, and Past President in 2016.

Count Me In! Using Labs to Teach Population Geography
2025-10-18 14:45 - 15:15 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Clark
Summary
In this session, we will discuss how to use laboratory assignments to teach population geography. Population geography connects diverse topics including sustainability, economics, politics, and culture. Using labs to teach this topic allows students to use real world data to deepen their understanding of population geography concepts. In this session, we will begin with an overview of teaching population geography, connecting it to geography and social studies standards. In the second part, examples of labs will be introduced, including the topics of international censuses, population policy campaigns, age specific fertility rates, and migration patterns. While the session is geared toward the college classroom, the content is easily adaptable to middle and high school grades. Lab assignments will be shared with attendees.
Session Focus
Higher Education | Inquiry | Population Geography, Labs
Conference Room
Clark
Meet the Presenter
Gillian Acheson is a professor in the Department of Geography & GIS at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. She teaches a variety of courses including World Regions, Human Geography, Population Geography, Spatial Thinking & Behavior, Geography of Food, and Geography and Social Justice. Her research interests are in geography education and the cultural landscape with publications ranging from map reading and comprehension to representation of women in introductory geography textbooks to the cultural landscape of cemeteries. She is a past recipient of NCGE’s Higher Education Distinguished Teaching award.

The Student Atlas of Nebraska – Ten Years in Practice
2025-10-18 14:45 - 15:15 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Nebraska
Summary
The creation of a dedicated student atlas for use in Nebraska elementary grade classrooms will be discussed. This teaching tool began with an initial 2016 limited edition and came to fruition with subsequent revised publications in 2017 and 2022. Mirroring efforts in recent years by several state geography organizations, the process of starting an atlas project and continuing it through revised editions will be presented. From the beginning, necessary consideration must be given to atlas format, funding, research, deadlines, and roll out. Focus groups involving elementary school teachers can identify state- specific subjects for emphasis. Buy-in from educators can be achieved via creation of ancillary materials (e.g., informational website, teacher’s guide, and lesson plans) to complement atlas use.
Session Focus
All Grade Levels | Curriculum and Instruction | Atlas, Mapping
Conference Room
Nebraska
Meet the Presenter
Dr. Randy Bertolas is professor of geography at Wayne State College in the rolling hills of northeast Nebraska. He has taught at WSC for 30 years and chaired the Department of History, Politics, and Geography for the past 17 of those years. From 2004-18 he served as coordinator of the Geographic Educators of Nebraska and in 2011-12 was president of Gamma Theta Upsilon, the international honor society in geography.

Exploring the Complex Geography of the Balkans
2025-10-18 14:45 - 15:15 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Iowa
Summary
This lecture will present the findings of two geographers who recently conducted field research in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina in preparation for leading professional development in the region. The presentation will provide a foundation for deeper exploration and future engagement with the Balkans, a region shaped by a rich and complex history of intersectional geography that remains largely unfamiliar to many U.S. educators. Belgrade and Novi Sad are the home of the Church of Saint Sava and Petrovaradin Fortress, sometimes called Gibraltar on the Danube. Each community provides insight as to the role of religion, politics, trade, and commerce, both today and in the past. An important region during both World Wars, the rise of nationalism served as a catalyst to the breakup, or Balkanization, of Yugoslavia in 1991. Prior, Sarajevo hosted the 1984 Winter Olympics, aimed at projecting a positive image of the region after the death of President Josip Broz Tito who had led the Communist Party
Session Focus
Secondary/High School | Government and Civics | Balkans, Exploration, Professional Development
Conference Room
Iowa
Meet the Presenter
Dr. Michael Allen is an Associate Professor of Geography at Towson University. He previously served as a co-coordinator of the Virginia Geographic Alliance and Geography Program Director at Old Dominion University. For more than a decade, Dr. Allen has worked with formal and informal K-16 educators to promote geographic understanding and climate literacy. Since 2019, Michael has coordinated the Chesapeake Bay Climate Institute, a multi-day experiential professional development program that uses the Chesapeake Bay watershed as a place of learning, culminating with a field experience on Tangier Island. In 2023, Allen worked at the University of Novi Sad, Serbia as a U.S. Fulbright Scholar, improving cross-cultural climate literacy. Exploring the Balkans, Allen reflects on his experience and highlights future professional development opportunities to explore both the human and environmental landscapes of the region. His local and international experience integrates cultural competence, geospatial technology, scientific understanding, and critical thinking into pedagogical approaches. A physical scientist, Michael has extensive experience working across academic disciplines to bridge mutual understanding between social and natural sciences.

Opportunities in Non-Formal Education to Enhance Girls’ Motivation Toward Learning Geography, Geospatial Technologies, and Related Careers
2025-10-18 14:45 - 15:15 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Winnebago
Summary
Join Lisa Elikan, NCGE 2025 Salvatore J. Natoli Dissertation Award recipient as she shares her dissertation that was conducted under the Department of Geography, Texas State University, San Marcos Texas, USA
Session Focus
All Grade Levels
Conference Room
Winnebago
Meet the Presenter
Lisa Elikan is an independent scholar and non-formal geography educator. Her research interests include geography education, non-formal learning in STEM and geography, motivational learning theories, and geospatial technologies in education.

Mapping the African American Green Book
2025-10-18 15:30 - 16:15 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Flannigan
Summary
The erasure of minority stories makes challenging the dominant reading of history important. The Green Book was an annual travel guide used by African American travelers from the 1930s to the mid-1960s to navigate a racially segregated America. A group of 9th graders, social studies teachers, and college students mapped Omaha’s 30 Green Book sites using ArcGIS and created Story Maps and a Hub Page to share the history uncovered on each one. This experience lit a spark with diverse summer school students and created an engaging hands-on curriculum for Nebraska’s social studies classrooms. The work will also educate thousands of Nebraskans through a 2025 joint exhibit with The Durham Museum, Great Plains Black History Museum, and Smithsonian. View the project at https://www.ops.org/Page/6677
Session Focus
Secondary/High School | U.S. History | History, Mapping, Research
Conference Room
Flannigan
Meet the Presenters
Kristine Gerber is a passionate storyteller and historian who brings Omaha’s rich past to life. A graduate of the University of Nebraska at Kearney with degrees in Journalism and Public Relations, she began uncovering the city’s hidden stories in 1999 while working at the Omaha World-Herald. There, she discovered the most powerful way to explore history—by listening to the everyday people who lived it. Those interviews led to the publication of Omaha: Times Remembered, and launched a publishing journey that has resulted in more than 50 books celebrating Omaha and Nebraska history. Today, Kristine shares her love of local history and architecture with secondary students and social studies teachers through Omaha Public Schools’ Making Invisible Histories Visible program, inspiring the next generation to connect with the places and stories that shaped their community
Cory Johnson

The geography of the Holocaust: Topics, geographical concepts, methods, and representation
2025-10-18 15:30 - 16:15 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Lewis
Summary
In this presentation, I will explore how geographic principles enhance Holocaust education, emphasizing spatial thinking, geographic inquiry, and geospatial technologies. Drawing from professional development courses and curricula, I will highlight three key themes: the varying scales of the Holocaust, the geographies of camps and ghettos, and the spatial ideologies behind Nazi policies. Maps, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and visual tools will be essential for examining these topics. I will discuss the Holocaust within its geographic and historical contexts, illustrating how geography frames the spatial organization of Nazi genocide— from ghettoization to extermination. I will also show how geospatial technologies and mapping reveal patterns and offer insights at both city and national levels. Finally, I will address the role of spatial thinking in Holocaust commemoration, connecting geographic education to civic engagement and historical reflection.
Session Focus
Secondary/High School | World History | Geography of the Holocaust, GIS
Conference Room
Lewis
Meet the Presenter
Alberto Giordano is a Professor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies at Texas State University. He has served as President of UCGIS, the University Consortium for Geographic Information Science and is the current Interim Director of the Gilbert M. Grosvenor Center for Geographic Education at Texas State University. Alberto is a founding member of the Holocaust Geographies Collaborative, a network of researchers and scholars interested in bringing geographical approaches, methods, and perspectives to the study of the Holocaust and other genocides.

Engaging local history through data literacy, storytelling, and digital scholarship
2025-10-18 15:30 - 16:15 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Clark
Summary
Building on Ed Ayers’ 2021 essay, “All History is Local,” freely accessible digital scholarship tools and resources will be explored, allowing participants to drill down to local historical data, and then widen the lens to see how their community is part of the story of our shared American past. Data visualizations and interactive mapping projects enhance student engagement by connecting local history classrooms, museums, and historical sites. Innovative open educational resources (OER) and digital scholarship embed data literacy and historical thinking skills. Join this BYOD interactive launchpad for local explorations of our collective stories from America’s past.
Session Focus
All Grade Levels | U.S. History | Digital Storytelling, Geoliteracy
Conference Room
Clark
Meet the Presenter
Annie Evans has spent over half her life teaching history, civics, and geography in Virginia’s K12 public schools. With New American History, she collaborates with a network of educators across the country to create learning resources to inspire the next generation of educators, public historians, and community leaders. Embracing inquiry and place-based learning, she serves as co-coordinator of the Virginia Geographic Alliance and is a National Geographic Grosvenor Teacher Fellow and Certified Educator.
Explore New American History’s Learning Resources, and share your feedback with Annie on Bluesky: @mapm8ker.bksy.social

Citizenship, Identity, and Othering in the Nazi Camp System
2025-10-18 15:30 - 16:15 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Nebraska
Summary
This session focuses on a chapter from the forthcoming book, Teaching Holocaust Geographies in Middle and Secondary Schools. The camp system was the heart of Nazi terror and control, and it played a dominant role in the systematic murder of millions of people. When war broke out in September 1939 and Nazi Germany began occupying countries, the camp system grew and expanded into those occupied countries. The camps offer a unique way to examine citizenship, identity, and othering, and to explore how those concepts informed prisoner experiences within the camps. Using geographic concepts to inform examinations of the camp system in classrooms allows students to critically examine the role of geographic and national identity, the concept of othering and exclusion – both internal and external – in constructing national identity, and how these identities came together in the microcosm of Nazi camps and influenced the experiences and chances of survival for those imprisoned in them.
Session Focus
Secondary/High School | World History | Holocaust, Citizenship, Identity
Conference Room
Nebraska
Meet the Presenter
Leah Rauch (she/her) is Director of Education at Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center, where she is responsible for the oversight of all educational initiatives and programs related to educational curricula, field trips, leadership programs, and teacher professional development offered by the Museum. She previously worked as an adjunct professor, teaching Jewish-German history and Holocaust courses in Berlin, where she also worked as an educator at Sachsenhausen Memorial and Museum. She has presented at international academic conferences in France, Germany, and the U.S., and has published articles in academic journals including The Journal for Holocaust Research. She recently co-authored a chapter in Teaching Holocaust Geographies in Middle and Secondary Schools. In 2024, Rauch was appointed to serve on the Illinois Holocaust and Genocide Commission.
Amanda Friedeman (she/her) is Associate Director of Education at Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center, overseeing programming for the museum’s school-aged audiences, including field trip content, professional development offerings for educators, and Make a Difference! The Harvey L. Miller Family Youth Exhibition. She also directs the Museum’s Speakers’ Bureau of Holocaust survivors and eyewitness and is a nationally-recognized expert on incorporating voices of the Second Generation into Holocaust education. Friedeman was historical consultant on Hour of Need: The Daring Escape of the Danish Jews during WWII, winner of the 2023 Claus Deleuran Prisen; co-editor of Interrupted Lives: Nine Stories of Child Survivors of the Holocaust; co-author of a chapter in Teaching Holocaust Geographies in Middle and Secondary Schools; and author of “The Visitor as Ambassador and Conduit: Civic Wellness Programs at Illinois Holocaust Museum” (Journal of Museum Education, 50.1, 2025).

Case Studies and World Geography
2025-10-18 15:30 - 16:15 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Iowa
Summary
This professional development session will explore the power of case studies in enhancing student learning in world geography. Participants will learn how to select and develop compelling real-world case studies relevant to diverse global issues. We will delve into effective strategies for structuring case study discussions to foster critical thinking, problem-solving, and inquiry-based learning. Participants will gain valuable insights into assessing student understanding through various methods, including individual reflections, group presentations, and creative projects. By the end of the session, educators will have the tools and confidence to integrate case studies into their classrooms to create engaging and meaningful learning experiences for their students.
Session Focus
APHG | Inquiry | Selecting, Structuring, Assessing
Conference Room
Iowa
Meet the Presenters
William Danes serves as a World Geography Teacher and Department Chair in Aldine ISD. In 2012, William earned his Master’s in Education Technology from Lamar University. Prior to 2018 William served the district as a Technology Specialist. William has taught at both the middle school and high school levels as well. In his free time, William likes to hike and read.

Dawn Brimhall serves as an Instructional Specialist in Aldine ISD and is a current doctoral candidate at the University of Virginia focusing on Curriculum and Instruction. In 2020, Dawn was named the Secondary Teacher of the Year for Aldine ISD and was nominated as a Teacher of the Year for the Houston Area Alliance for Black School Educators (HAABSE). Prior to becoming an Instructional Specialist, Dawn spent 10 years teaching history in Texas and Utah. In her free time, Dawn loves to travel the world and explore new cultures.

Inquiry into Persecution, Scale, and Spatial Change with Holocaust Survivor Testimonies
2025-10-18 15:30 - 16:45 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Winnebago
Summary
This presentation is based on our chapter in Teaching Holocaust Geographies in Middle and Secondary Schools, which offers a unique perspective on using geography to understand how this genocide altered people, locations, and landscapes. Using the Geo-Inquiry Progress, students are empowered to use geographic tools to explore Holocaust survivor testimonies to analyze how policies of the Nazi regime impacted Jewish mobility. Investigating persecution across multiple scales, from the local to the global, allows students to develop a deeper understanding of how legislative measures and geography impact the daily lives of individuals. Utilizing survivor testimony in the classroom fosters historical empathy and critical thinking and allows students to connect past restrictions to contemporary issues of forced displacement and migration. The inquiry process engages students in storytelling by creating visual representations of movement and restrictions, allowing them to illustrate patterns of oppression.
This presentation highlights how spatial analysis can enhance historical inquiry in the classroom. Furthermore, by using the Holocaust as a case study, we will illustrate the fragility of democratic societies and promote a deeper appreciation for safeguarding individual rights and civil liberties. Ultimately, our objective is to show how the academic framework of geo-inquiry allows students to examine complex issues at various scales.
Session Focus
Middle School/Junior High | Inquiry | Geo-Inquiry, Scale, Spatial Change
Conference Room
Winnebago
Meet the Presenters
Megan Bowes is in her eleventh year of teaching middle school social studies and is a non-degree-seeking graduate student at the University of South Carolina. Currently a teacher in Greenville, South Carolina, Bowes previously taught in Florida, where she was recognized in 2016 by the Florida Council for Social Studies as the Middle School Teacher of the Year for St. Lucie County. She is an Alfred Lerner Fellow through the Jewish Foundation for the Righteous and is part of the 2022-2024 South Carolina Council on the Holocaust Teacher Fellow Program. She has presented at the South Carolina Association for Middle Level Education and continues her Holocaust education through professional development.

Scott Auspelmyer is the Executive Director of the South Carolina Council on the Holocaust. He is a United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Teaching Fellow who also has 19 years of experience teaching high school social studies in South Carolina and was previously recognized as the National Council for the Social Studies Secondary Educator of the Year. He has presented at numerous state and national conferences and regularly conducts professional development training in Holocaust education for teachers in South Carolina and beyond.

Sovereignty, Territoriality, and the Zangezur Corridor
2025-10-18 16:30 - 17:00 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Flannigan
Summary
Participants will hear an overview of the debate over the Zangezur Corridor. Then in small groups, participants will read different viewpoints of the situation. Group members will discuss the pros/cons of anticipated outcomes. As a whole group, we will discuss how the activity could be used with their classes.
Session Focus
Secondary/High School | World/International | Current Events, Trade
Conference Room
Flannigan
Meet the Presenters
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 table leader, APHG PBL Summer Institute facilitator, and serves on the editorial board of The Geography Teacher journal.

When to Teach “Introductory” GIS? Evaluating Course Sequencing Across Institutions
2025-10-18 16:30 - 17:00 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Winnebago
Summary
As GIS education continues to expand, it is essential to re-evaluate how introductory GIS courses are sequenced. Historically, introductory GIS was one of the few GIS-related courses available, often positioned later in students’ academic careers. However, with rising demand for GIS professionals and more specialized courses, this approach may be outdated. We examine how different institutions—from community colleges offering GIS early to four-year universities placing it at junior or senior levels—structure their GIS programs. We also explore how prerequisites and course sequencing may deter students from further GIS study or careers in the field. With the growing availability of GIS majors, minors, and certificates, introducing GIS earlier could help build a stronger pipeline of graduates and expand career pathways. By analyzing program structures, we aim to offer insights to enhance the accessibility, appeal, and long-term impact of GIS education.
Session Focus
Higher Education | Curriculum and Instruction| GIS, Sequencing
Conference Room
Winnebago
Meet the Presenters
Dr. Thomas R. Craig is an Assistant Professor of Geography and Geographic Information Science in the Department of Geography and Geospatial Sciences at South Dakota State University. With nearly two decades of experience as a geography educator, Dr. Craig currently teaches a wide range of GIS courses, including Introduction to GIS, Web GIS, Spatial Modeling, and Data Creation and Integration. He holds a Ph.D. in Geography from Oklahoma State University.

Pecans: The All-American Nut
2025-10-18 16:30 - 17:00 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Lewis
Summary
The audience will be presented with a short history of the pecan nut. A slide show will follow the history of the pecan, touching on the Native Americans who introduced the nut to the first Europeans exploring the Americas. The wonderful nutritious value and early farming techniques were used to enhance the plant and the pecan’s popularity with the founding fathers of our country. Introduction of several lessons to be used with middle school students of geography and American history. One lesson will be demonstrated with participants, using maps to chart the spread of the pecans throughout the United States and the world. Visual aids will include a branch from a pecan tree, nuts with the hard outer husk still attached, along with native and soft- shelled pecans. We will discuss the different uses of pecans and how the nuts have been modified by improving size, taste, and yield. Our presentation will include products to show, including items made from pecan wood, pecans, and pecan oil.
Session Focus
Middle School/Junior High | U.S. History| America’s, Indigenous, Resource
Conference Room
Lewis
Meet the Presenters
Pamela Hamman was born and raised in Oklahoma and has always had a love for learning. She enjoys reading, exploring new places, and gaining new perspectives. Hamman attended the University of Oklahoma for her undergraduate studies and earned a master’s degree in education from East Central University. She is married to her high school sweetheart, and has two children and two grandchildren. Family is a big part of Hamman’s life, and they continue to be a source of joy and inspiration. She has worked in education for over twenty years and still find excitement in what she does. Every day brings new opportunities to learn—often from her students. She spent her entire teaching career in middle school, and when she first started, someone said, “You’ll either love it or hate it.” She can honestly say she does not hate it! Throughout the years, she has taught a variety of subjects including Civics, World Geography, Western and Eastern Hemisphere Geography, World History, American History, and Current Events. She has also coached high school swim. Her time at Prague Public Schools has been incredibly rewarding—the supportive community and strong connections make it a great place to work. Outside the classroom, she loves working outdoors, traveling, and meeting new people. Hamman is a big fan of live music and tries to attend as many concerts as possible. She also has a deep interest in American History. She had the honor of seeing three U.S. Presidents in person, and is proud to say there’s even an Olympian in my family!
Lousondra Waltz is from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma where she grew up. Waltz graduated from Oklahoma State University with a Bachelor of Arts in History (Go Pokes). She has two sons who graduated from the University of Oklahoma (Go Sooners), they are both happily married but no grandchildren yet. Waltz has been teaching for 28 years in public schools in Oklahoma, both in high school and middle school. She has taught US History, World History, World Geography, US Government, and Western Hemisphere Geography. She loves teaching, traveling, National Parks, history, dogs, and my family. She has greatly enjoyed meeting teachers from all over the country and learning from others.

Mapping the Geographical Theme of Movement on the GeoHistoGram
2025-10-18 16:30 - 17:00 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Clark
Summary
From ancient civilizations to religions, technology, and even disease, the geographic theme of “Movement” plays an integral role in our understanding of the world. Participants will investigate the geographic theme of movement utilizing the GeoHistoGram, using such topics as civilizations, religion, and disease. At the end of the session, participants will receive a packet of resources and “class ready” activities.
Session Focus
Secondary/High School | World History | Movement, History/Geography Integration, Mapping
Conference Room
Clark
Meet the Presenter
Cynthia Bloom

Context, Input and Implementation Challenges on Learning Outcomes in Geography
2025-10-18 16:30 - 17:00 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Iowa
Summary
Evidence has shown that some of the objectives of geography are hardly met. Research interests have been more on interventions especially on strategies to improve students’ learning outcomes in Geography than on evaluation of the context, input and implementation challenges. Therefore, this study was carried out to evaluate students’ perception, curriculum objectives, content, resources, time allotted, methods of teaching, pedagogical practices, and implementation challenges on learning outcomes in geography. The descriptive survey design was adopted. The multi-stage sampling method was deployed to select 94 teachers and 1800 students of geography. Students’ perception contributed most to achievement (b=0.08; t= 4.02; P<0.05), content had the most contribution to skills attainment (b=0.01; t= 0.39; P>0.05) while, students’ perception also had the highest contribution to practices (b=0.24; t=13.33; P<0.05). All independent variables contributed jointly to students’ achievement, skills and practices.
Session Focus
Secondary/High School | Curriculum and Instruction | Geography Curriculum, Learning Outcomes, Teaching and Learning
Conference Room
Iowa
Meet the Presenter
Dr. Abimbola Andrew Olayemi is the Principal of Jemibewon International Academy, Kogi State, Nigeria. He holds a Ph.D. in Arts and Social Sciences Education, with research interests in Geography Education, Climate Change Education, Social Studies Education, and Curriculum Evaluation. With over a decade of teaching experience at the secondary school level, Dr. Olayemi has published articles in reputable journals and authored e-books, including “How to Excel in a School System” and “Geography Beyond the Classroom.
Peter A. Amosun, Ph.D is a Professor of Social Studies Education and Geography Education at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria. Prof. Amosun’s research interests cut across Social Studies and Civic Education, Environmental Education, Climate Change Education, Geography Education, Internet Crime Prevention, and Curriculum and Instruction. He has made tremendous impact in promoting geography education within and outside the University community through scholarly work with local and international benefits. To his credits are several local and international journal articles, chapters in books and books. Professor Amosun is currently the Director, Centre for General Studies in the University of Ibadan. He was the immediate past Head, Department of Arts and Social Sciences Education, University of Ibadan. He has supervised tens of undergraduate and Postgraduate students. He has acted as external examiners within and outside Nigeria. He has mentored many students who are now occupying strategic places and position in the academia both within and outside Nigeria.

Exploring South Asia Through Literature: Using Award-Winning Books to Enrich Geography Education
2025-10-18 16:30 - 17:00 (America/Chicago) | Conference Room: Nebraska
Summary
The South Asia Book Award (SABA) celebrates outstanding literature that authentically portrays the cultures, histories, and lived experiences of South Asians, both in South Asia and across the globe. This session introduces geography educators to the wealth of award-winning books that can enhance students’ understanding of the diverse countries and cultures that make up the South Asian region. Through a curated selection of books, from picture book to young adult novels, participants will discover how to integrate compelling literature into geography curricula to bring South Asia to life in the classroom. Whether you’re teaching about historical events, contemporary cultural issues, or geographical landscapes, these books offer valuable perspectives that will engage students and deepen their global awareness.
Session Focus
Early Childhood/Elementary | Literacy
Conference Room
Nebraska
Meet the Presenters
Julie Wakefield is a retired high school teacher now teaching in the higher education system. She volunteers with the South Asia Book Award Committee to choose books annually that are worthy of recognition. She regularly integrates cultural stories, poetry, literature and other print options into her teaching.

GeoCircle: Teaching Culture and Cultural Landscape
2025-10-21 19:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York) | Webinar
Overview
Teaching culture and cultural landscape is a favorite for many teachers. Learning about culture is a favorite for students. What is your favorite aspect of teaching culture? What do the students struggle with? Join us for a conversation about resources, strategies and challenges the students face.
The Facilitator
Carter Waterkyn
Join the Session
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Religion & Government in the Middle East: Election season
2025-10-29 19:00 - 20:00 (America/New_York) | Webinar
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 (America/New_York) | Webinar
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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