Author: Sarah Ruschak

To start the final week of classes, students discussed the election of 1864, looking at Frederick Douglass’s “Mission of the War,” Anna Dickinson’s “Perils of the Hour,” and the Gettysburg Address. During the break, students met with the two grad TAs to decide positions for this week’s Lincoln and Douglass debate.

Choosing positions with a coin toss

After a subtext lecture with Professor Mealy and a quick lunch, students headed to their first debate prep session. They worked on familiarizing themselves with Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass’s arguments over the best way to end slavery, honing their arguments for Friday. In the final few hours before close reading essays and videos were due at 7, students worked to fine-tune their arguments. Once everything was submitted, staff and students celebrated with a trip to Massey’s for some ice cream. With work for the day completed, some students relaxed by watching a movie. Overall, it was another day full of learning, and the students felt proud of themselves for completing their close reading assignments!

Yum!

A welcome treat 

We wrapped up our first week of classes with a discussion of Lincoln’s secession crisis, looking at his first inaugural address and his House Divided Speech. Later in the morning, students reviewed the outlines for their video and essay assignments. After lunch, students met with the League of Women Voters.

A friendly game of Jeopardy

Another interesting day of class!

They led a discussion about the importance of civic engagement at the local level and current challenges to voting rights. We finished off the session with a quick game of Jeopardy, with questions ranging from the Constitution to past US Independence Day celebrations. Next, students headed back to the dorm for a Kahoot game on Civil War-era slang. After the first game, we played a few more rounds to test our knowledge on general US history and Hamilton. To wrap up the night, some students continued to work on their essays, while others watched the movie Gettysburg in preparation for our field trip tomorrow. 

Today, students learned about abolition in their morning classes, examining Frederick Douglass’s “Fifth of July Speech” and Frances Harper’s “Bury Me in a Free Land.” After a quick lunch, we headed on the bus to Harrisburg to visit the Pennsylvania capital. After being wowed by the dome, we sat down for a discussion with an assistant for one of the state’s senators.

Welcome to the Capitol!

In the Q&A session, we all discussed the importance of local government, what the day-to-day looks like while working in the capital, and the complexities of compromise. Afterwards, we went on a tour of the entire building, seeing the Senate chamber, House of Representatives chamber, and the Supreme Courtroom.

Examining the architecture.

Before heading home, we stopped at A Gathering at the Crossroads, a memorial that highlights African American history in Harrisburg. It contains statues of Thomas Morris Chester, Jacob C. Compton, William Howard Day, and Frances Harper. After dinner, the students started to brainstorm for their essays and relaxed by watching a movie. 

Visiting A Gathering at the Crossroads

Two students chatting with Professor Wingert after moving in.

Welcome to Dickinson! Students arrived on campus and moved into their home for the next two weeks, High Street dorm. After goodbyes had been said to parents and family, everybody met in the common area for introductions and a quick game of Two Truths and a Lie. Then, we headed to our first dinner together at the college’s cafeteria. After eating, the students finished the evening by hanging out and finishing up their readings for tomorrow’s class. It seems like the program is off to a great start!