About

The Workshop

On July 9, 1860, the Clotilda arrived in Mobile, Alabama. On board were 110 enslaved Africans transported directly from West Africa. They were the last enslaved persons imported to the United States after the transatlantic slave trade was outlawed in 1808. Due to the criminal nature of this voyage, the Clotilda’s captain, William Foster, sank the ship upon unloading its cargo. Following the end of the Civil War, 32 of the 110 captives, newly emancipated, purchased land just outside of Mobile and founded Africatown, a diaspora community that remains inhabited to this today. In 2019 the remains of the Clotilda were finally located at the bottom of the Mobile River.

The workshop will draw attention to the experiences of Africatown’s founding generation as the final Africans brought to the United States and their resilience in creating a diaspora community that continues to persist in Mobile. Participants will have the opportunity to engage with those living in Africatown today.The workshop content will include the journey of the enslaved Africans on the Clotilda, teaching tough history, and various digital media projects.

Stipends and Attendance

Summer Scholars receive a stipend of $1,300.  Stipends provide compensation to participants for their time commitment and help to defray participation costs, such as travel, program activities, lodging, and meals (for residential programs), and technical support (for virtual programs). For residential programs, participants cover their own costs for travel to/from a program, lodging, and meals. Stipends are taxable as income.Project teams must not reduce participant stipends for project-related activities, lodging, or meal costs without prior approval. Project teams must not place contingencies (completing a lesson plan, completing a program evaluation, etc.) on the receipt of participant stipends.
Applicants who accept an offer to participate are expected to remain during the entire period of the program and to participate in its work on a full-time basis. If a participant is obliged through special circumstances to arrive after the beginning or depart before the end of the Institutes or Landmarks program, it shall be the recipient institution’s responsibility to see that only a pro rata share of the stipend is received or that the appropriate pro rata share of the
stipend is returned if the participant has already received the full stipend.

Participant Evaluations

The NEH requires project directors to collect anonymous participant evaluations at the conclusion of their programs. Unedited participant evaluation responses will be included in the project’s final report to the NEH and any future Institutes or Landmarks applications.

Continuing Education, In-Service, and Graduate Credits for K-12 Programs

 Project teams may opt to offer continuing education, in-service, or graduate credit. These opportunities sometimes require additional work by participants beyond the program, such as writing a research paper, and participants are responsible for associated costs or fees unless otherwise noted. See individual project websites for additional information.

Spring Hill College

This workshop is hosted by Spring Hill College as a way of continuing its role of promoting social justice through action and education. Spring Hill College has a rich history of promoting social justice and racial equality. As the first college in Alabama to integrate and allow students of color, students and faculty were very active in fighting for civil rights. Martin Luther King Jr. acknowledged this in his Letter from a Birmingham Jail by commending Spring Hill College’s efforts.

Project Directors