CONGRATULATIONS TO OREGON'S 2026 HISTORY TEACHER OF THE YEAR

Congratulations to Aurora Richardson of Sherwood High School, named the 2026 Oregon History Teacher of the Year by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. The award has honored one K-12 teacher from each state, the District of Columbia, Department of Defense schools, and US territories since 2004, recognizing educators for passion, creativity, and excellence in teaching American history. Each state winner receives a $1,000 honorarium and a curated set of classroom resources, and becomes one of the finalists considered for the National History Teacher of the Year award.

Richardson has taught social science at Sherwood High School since 2007, including AP United States Government and Politics, Advanced Law Studies, and Modern World History, and now also teaches a dual-credit government course through Portland Community College. She was Oregon's James Madison Fellow in 2023, coaches the school's mock trial team, and serves on the Oregon Council of Social Studies Executive Board, the Civics Learning Project's Educator Advisory Council, the Oregon Historical Society's Teacher Advisory Council, and as a Teacher Ambassador for the National Constitution Center.

Read more about the award at Gilder Lehrman's press release.

NATIONAL HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH

National Hispanic Heritage Month runs September 15 through October 15, recognizing the histories and contributions of Hispanic and Latino Americans. Oregon's standards call for the inclusion of Americans of Latino, Chicano, and Latine descent among the traditionally underrepresented groups woven throughout the curriculum.

Oregon and National Resources

• The National Museum of the American Latino The National Museum of the American Latino observes Hispanic Heritage Month between September 15 and October 15 each year to celebrate the Latino community. 
• Oregon Historical Society is hosting a community conversation bringing together immigrant and refugee community members with elected leaders on Wednesday, September 16, and is open free to the public September 12 and 13 as part of Portland Staycation and Sunday Parkways.
• The Oregon Encyclopedia maintains entries on Latino and Latine history in Oregon and can anchor a research assignment on local contributions.
• Miracle Theatre / Milagro Theatre in Portland has produced Spanish, English, and bilingual work for over 30 years and offers a starting point for exploring Latino arts and culture in the state.

Oregon Events

• Fiesta Cultural, Friday, September 4, 5:30-10 p.m., Farmers Market Pavilion, Eugene. Part of the First Friday ArtWalk.
• El Grito, September 15-16, daily 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Rose Quarter Commons, Portland. Celebrates the independence days of Mexico and other Latin American countries with folkloric dance and live music.
• El Tigre Fest, Saturday, October 3, 11 a.m.-7 p.m., Cook Family Park, Tigard. A free family festival marking both Hispanic Heritage Month and Filipino American History Month.
• PODER Hispanic Heritage Month Breakfast and Summit, Tuesday, September 15, 8 a.m.-4 p.m., Salem Convention Center, Salem. Hosted by Oregon's Latino Leadership Network.

POLISH AMERICAN HERITAGE PROCLAMATION

Governor Kotek signed a proclamation recognizing Polish American heritage in Oregon, marking the ties between the United States and Poland that trace back to Jamestown in 1607, and honoring the contributions of Polish Americans to science, the arts, and the fight for American independence through figures like Tadeusz Kosciuszko and Kazimierz Pulaski. The proclamation also recognizes Oregon's own Polish community, including Portland's St. Stanislaus Polish Catholic Church (established 1907) and the Polish Library Building Association (established 1911), and the role Polish organizations play in the state through education, business, faith, and cultural life.

Oregon Event

The proclamation coincides with the 30th annual Portland Polish Festival, Saturday and Sunday, September 19-20, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Saturday and noon-6 p.m. Sunday, at the Polish Hall, 3900 N Interstate Avenue, Portland. The free, family-friendly festival features Polish food, live music, folk dancing, cultural exhibits, and a pierogi eating contest. Festival details.

A Month of Civic Milestones

September opens the school year with multiple civic and historical observances. Labor Day (September 7) marks the achievements of the labor movement, National Voter Registration Day (September 15) and Constitution Day (September 17) fall one week apart, National Hispanic Heritage Month begins September 15, and September 11 marks the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks. Together they offer an early opportunity to engage with new Social Science Standards and Essential Disciplinary Practices. Engaging students in chronological thinking, primary source analysis, and exploring diverse perspectives on history is a great way  to start the year.

UNITED STATES SENATE YOUTH PROGRAM SCHOLARSHIP

The United States Senate Youth Program, established by U.S. Senate Resolution in 1962, is a scholarship and leadership opportunity for outstanding high school students interested in public service. The 65th annual Washington Week will be held March 6-13, 2027, sending two student delegates from Oregon (and two from each state, the District of Columbia, and the Department of Defense Education Activity) to Washington, D.C. for a week of briefings with Senators, Cabinet members, and agency directors, with meetings with the President and a Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court in most years. All travel, lodging, and meals are covered by The Hearst Foundations, and each delegate receives a $12,500 college scholarship.

To qualify, students must be actively serving in a high-level elected or appointed leadership position; full eligibility rules are on the national How to Apply page.

Oregon-specific application materials and information are posted on the Oregon Department of Education USSYP page.

Questions can be directed to ode.socialscience@ode.oregon.gov.

Deadline for submission is October 12th. 

CONSTITUTION DAY AND NATIONAL VOTER REGISTRATION DAY

National Voter Registration Day falls on September 15, 2026, and Constitution Day (also called Citizenship Day) falls two days later on September 17, commemorating the signing of the Constitution in 1787. Taken together, they connect the founding document to the ongoing work of civic participation it makes possible.

Oregon Standards Connections

• 3.C.CE.7: Identify a local public issue and describe ways individuals and groups can engage with decision-makers
• 8.C.PI.3 and 8.C.PI.4: Identify the reasons for the adoption of the Constitution and examine primary source documents establishing civil rights
• HS.C.PI.7: Compare core documents associated with the protection of individual rights
• HS.C.DP.16: Identify the requirements and process for voting

Classroom Resources

• iCivics Constitution Day Collection offers games, short videos, and a matching activity for building evidence-based reasoning skills.
• The Bill of Rights Institute is centering its 2026 Constitution Day materials on the years between the Declaration of Independence (1776) and the Constitution (1787), a useful frame given the approaching 250th anniversary of independence.
• National Constitution Center Constitution Day Resources includes the Interactive Constitution, a Preamble unscramble activity for younger students, and a nonpartisan Constitution 101 course built with Khan Academy.
• National Voter Registration Day provides free organizing materials for schools that want to run a registration drive for eligible students and staff.

Event: Oregon's Constitution in Conversation

Thursday, September 17, 6:00-7:30 p.m.

University of Portland 004 Dundon-Berchtold Hall

University of Portland and Civics Learning Project host a moderated conversation with Oregon Supreme Court Justice Bronson D. James and Prof. Bill Curtis on how Oregon's Constitution is interpreted, sometimes differently than the U.S. Supreme Court's reading of the U.S. Constitution. The discussion centers on two Oregon cases: State v. Robertson (free speech) and State v. De Witt Simons (digital privacy). The program is nonpartisan, free, and open to students, educators, and the community, with time built in for audience questions. For ADA accommodations, contact Anne Santiago (santiago@up.edu). 

PATRIOT DAY: THE 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF SEPTEMBER 11

September 11, 2026 marks 25 years since the attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and Flight 93. For those who lived through it, the images and emotion of the attacks were a defining moment, but for students in school today, September 11 is as distant as the Vietnam War was for students in 2001. Careful, source-based instruction, can help students connect with the past. September 11th set in motion sweeping changes to US intelligence and counterterrorism practices, launched major military operations, and reshaped the world students are growing up in. Help students better understand the present by building important historical context. 

Resources

• The 9/11 Memorial & Museum Anniversary Digital Learning Experience is a free program built around a 35-minute film of first-person accounts, with a live chat option for classes.
• 9/11 Memorial & Museum Educator Professional Development is offering free virtual sessions previewing the 25th anniversary materials.
• The Morningside Center 9/11 Anniversary Teaching Guide addresses how to hold space for the controversy and strong emotion the day can bring up in the classroom.
• 9/11 Day Classrooms of Service offers a flexible, no-cost recognition program for K-8 classrooms marking the day through service or reflection.
• CFR Education has built a set of nonpartisan resources for the 25th anniversary, including a 9/11 reflection activity, a US foreign policy after 9/11 lesson plan, a short reading on the phrase "War on Terror", a retrospective on the 9/11 Commission and intelligence reform, and a classroom response simulation.

OHS VISITS: SCHOOL TOURS

The Oregon Historical Society offers guided and self-guided tours of its exhibitions for K-12 and college students, summer camps, and student-focused community programs. Tours are free for K-12 school groups, and funds are available to fully reimburse K-12 schools for transportation costs.

School tours must be reserved at least three weeks in advance. Guided tours in English and Spanish are available Tuesday through Friday for school groups of 20 to 100. Self-guided tours can be booked on Wednesdays and Fridays for groups of 24 or fewer. Non-school groups should see the Plan Your Visit page for discounted group visit scheduling.

Oregon Historical Society Free Museum Days September 12 and 13, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., in partnership with Portland Staycation and Sunday Parkways. A low-cost field trip option or family recommendation for exploring Oregon history exhibits.

LITERACY STRATEGIES FOR SOCIAL STUDIES

Reading stamina is a challenge in every content area, and social studies classrooms are well-positioned to help. Thinking Nation outlines a three-step sequence for easing students into complex primary sources. Using a simple Notice, Wonder, Think chart to guide close reading. The approach is a practical way to build literacy skills directly into a history or civics unit rather than treating reading instruction as separate from content.

Read the full strategy at Thinking Nation

K-8 CLASSROOM RESOURCES

Reading Like a Historian for Elementary and Middle School offers lessons for younger students built with the Educating for American Democracy initiative, using primary sources to build historical thinking skills. All materials are free.

C-GEO: UPDATED STUDENT ATLAS OF OREGON

The 3rd Edition of C-GEO's Student Atlas of Oregon is now available. Featuring brand-new and revised maps, the atlas covers Oregon's physical geography, cultural geography, history, people, and environment, from plate tectonics and watersheds to Native American Tribes, migration, land ownership, racial diversity, population trends, and natural resources. It was created by PSU cartographers and Oregon educators specifically for K-12 classrooms and is free to download.

Standards Connections

• 3.G.HE.6 and 3.G.HE.7: Compare Oregon regions and identify Oregon's natural resources
• 4.G.GR.3: Compare tribal, colonial, historical, and contemporary maps of Oregon
• HS.G.MM.3: Investigate how political and economic decisions determine settlement patterns in the United States

Access the Student Atlas of Oregon

PROFESSIONAL LEARNING

Pacific Northwest History Conference: "Whose History? Our History!" October 8-10, 2026, Spokane, WA. Hosted jointly by the Washington State Council for the Social Studies, the Oregon Historical Society, and the Northwest Museum Association, this year's conference explores how individuals and communities reclaim histories that have been hidden, erased, or silenced. Registration closes September 15, with K-12 teacher rates starting at $100 before August 1. Registration and details.

National Council for the Social Studies Annual Conference December 4-6, 2026, Chicago, IL. The 106th NCSS conference carries the theme Social Studies 365, with breakout sessions, keynote speakers, and place-based learning experiences around the host city. Conference details.

9/11 Memorial & Museum Educator Sessions Free virtual professional development previewing the 25th Anniversary Digital Learning Experience, with sessions running through early September. Reserve a spot.

Lewis and Clark Teacher Workshop: Fort Clatsop October 24, 2026. An in-person workshop offering 5 credit hours and hands-on strategies for teaching about exploration and Tribal history, including sessions on teaching with discovery boxes, using scavenger hunts, treating Fort Clatsop itself as a teaching aid, and how to teach Tribal history alongside the Lewis and Clark story. $15 per person, lunch included. Register on Eventbrite.

Ethnic Studies Professional Development Questionnaire Western Oregon University is exploring new professional development workshops for K-12 social studies teachers focused on ethnic studies pedagogy, and is seeking educator input through a short questionnaire before finalizing the design. Take the questionnaire.

OREGON OPEN LEARNING RESOURCES

In support of the required fall 2026 implementation of the Social Science Standards, ODE has built a Social Science Instructional Framework webpage along with numerous free resources on Oregon Open Learning, organized by grade level and topic for direct alignment with the standards referenced throughout this newsletter.