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SBTHP to Welcome Santa Barbara Junior High School 7th Graders

The History and Relevancy Project is a collaborative effort by California State Parks, UC Santa Barbara and the Santa Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation (SBTHP) to bring specialized educational programming exploring the universal themes of migration and immigration to CA State Historic Parks. As a part of this pilot project, we plan to offer a customized field trip to all of Santa Barbara Junior High School’s 400 seventh graders on September 26 and 27, 2019 at El Presidio de Santa Bárbara State Historic Park. In preparation, we invited two of SBJHS’s seventh grade teachers for a tour of the Presidio in early August. Here is seventh grade history teacher Kristin Martinez-Pettit’s reflection on the process thus far:

SBJHS 7th grade teachers Kristin Martinez-Pettit (left) and Nicole Neimroozi (right) along with SBTHP’s Director of Programs Danny Tsai during a tour of the Presidio. Photo by Kevin McGarry.

All students should know that their story is relevant and part of Santa Barbara’s history. Through a series of meetings with representatives of the Santa Barbara Trust for Historic Preservation, UC Santa Barbara and CA State Parks, seventh grade English and Social Studies teachers at SBJHS, with the help of our teacher librarian and community liaison, are planning and facilitating a project to help students connect their stories to the city of Santa Barbara. The project will include class visits from CA State Parks and UCSB staff and a field trip for all of our seventh graders to visit the El Presidio de Santa Bárbara State Historic Park in late September, organized by the SBTHP Programs Department. Our goal through this project is to build a sense of community amongst our students as well as stoke their interest in the human story while cultivating their own.

“Our goal through this project is to build a sense of community amongst our students as well as stoke their interest in the human story while cultivating their own.

In preparation for our trip, we met with SBTHP representatives, educators, and teachers to create the best learning experience for our students. After a series of meetings and our preview of the Presidio grounds and planned activities, teachers began planning the logistics of the trip. Every preparation meeting for our planned field trip has been insightful, informative, and helpful as we attempt to merge the history of Santa Barbara with learning in the classroom.

SBJHS 7th grade teachers Kristin Martinez-Pettit (center) and Nicole Neimroozi (left) with SBTHP’s Associate Director for Public Engagement Kevin McGarry (right) and UCSB History Professor and SBTHP Board Member, Dr. Randy Bergstrom.

Written by Kevin McGarry

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