Montana Heritage Project: teaching critical inquiry and independent thought

he Montana Heritage Project is dedicated to teaching young people to think clearly and deeply about the world they face. Students are asked to explore their community – its place in national and world events, its relationship to the natural environment, and its cultural heritage as expressed in traditions and celebrations, literature and arts, economic practices, responses to crises, and everyday life.

The Project is a teaching order, a community of like-minded members formed by their commitment to a set of principles and practices that guide their work as teachers and as members of local communities.

Asking Questions

Students have researched questions such as these: What effect did the coming of television have upon life in Chester? How has ranching culture in Harlowton changed over the past 100 years? How did changes in the national economy affect the coal mining industry in Roundup? How did people in Libby respond to the influx of people during the construction of Libby Dam? How did World War II affect women in Townsend?

Researching the world as it exists locally

Thinking as detectives, journalists, folklorists, scientists, and historians, students search for clues in brittle old newspapers, fading photographs, and changed landscapes. They locate information in government and business archives. They examine historic buildings, community celebrations, and old letters for insight into what what changes, what stays the same, and why.

Critical Reflection

Reflecting on what has been found – analyzing it, fitting it into existing knowledge, testing it, playing with it, and discussing it with others – students move from facts toward knowledge. What do the loggers of the 1920s have to teach Libby students about today’s struggles? How did people in Harlowton respond when the Milwaukee Road closed down? How did the Salish in St. Ignatius deal with the influx of settlers when the Flathead Reservation was opened to homesteaders in 1910?

Giving Gifts of Scholarship

Students in the Heritage Project join the community of scholars in the ongoing work of developing and preserving human knowledge. Every Heritage Project culminates in tangible scholarly products that are preserved in the Montana Historical Society archives as well as in local school and museum collections. Most projects feature a public event to invite the community to share what has been learned.

Who Are We?

The Montana Heritage Project was established in 1995 through the leadership and financial support of the Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg Foundation, and the institutional commitment of the Library of Congress.

Today, the Montana Heritage Project is a program of the Montana Historical Society. It is governed by a board that includes Liz Claiborne, Art Ortenberg, and Brian Cockhill (The Liz Claiborne and Art Ortenberg Foundation), Arnold Olsen (Director, Montana Historical Society); Linda McCulloch (Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction), Mark Sherouse (Director, Montana Committee for the Humanities), and Margaret Bulger (Director, American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress). It is directed by Michael L. Umphrey.

Projects have been completed or are underway in 31 Montana communities: Bigfork, Brady, Broadus, Browning, Centerville, Chester, Columbus, Corvallis, Dillon, Eureka, Fairfield, Fairview, Fort Benton, Great Falls, Harlowton, Lewistown, Libby, Polson, Pryor, Red Lodge, Ronan, Roundup, St. Ignatius, St. Labre Catholic Indian School, Simms, Thompson Falls, Townsend, Whitefish, and White Sulphur Springs.

What's Happening?

2005–2006 Calendar of Events

"This project has provided a model for American secondary education at a time when fresh ideas and methods are very much needed,"said James Billington, Librarian of Congress, who was our guest at the Youth Heritage Festival in Helena. His speech is here. Coverage from the Helena Independent Record here.

Plan to attend the 2006 Summer Conference for Place-Based Teaching in Butte, June 19-20. To add your name to the mailing list for information about this event, contact Marcella Sherfy.

"When History Speaks," a 40-minute DVD that teaches how to plan and conduct an oral history project, is available to high school English and history teachers, as well as to museums and historical societies. More

Gallery: Oral History Photographs from the Montana Heritage Project, 2004-05

Montana Heritage Project teachers will present a strand of workshops at the MEA-AFT conference in Missoula October 2005.

Michael L. Umphrey will speak at the 2005 Governor’s Conference on Civic Engagement at the Doubletree in Missoula on October 3rd.

New Affiliate Schools Join the Project: Three new schools will participate in the 2005-06 Affiliates Program. These schools will complete oral history projects. The schools include Brady High School, Centerville High School, Polson High School.

Guidelines for Youth Heritage Festival portfolios and final reports