• Sunday, April 26 at Historic Stagville (10:00 am - 4 pm) | 5828 Old Oxford Highway, Durham, NC, 27712
• Monday, April 27 at Durham Performing Arts Center (7 pm - 10 pm) | Attending teachers will receive a FREE ticket to “Biscuits & Banjos presents: Rhiannon Giddens’ Beloved Community"
• APPLICATIONS CLOSE ON MARCH 25  

***Attending teachers will receive a $50 stipend + a ticket to Rhiannon Giddens' Beloved Community at DPAC + Lunch + 1 CEU***

EVENT OVERVIEW
Historic Stagville and Biscuits & Banjos invites K–12 teachers (grades 8–12) to join us for a meaningful day of learning at Stagville as we explore the interconnected themes of resistance, resilience, and enduring culture. Attendees will then attend “Biscuits & Banjos presents: Rhiannon Giddens’ Beloved Community" the following evening, witnessing the enduring role of Black culture in communities today.

EVENT DETAILS
Historic Stagville, a 165‑acre State Historic Site managed by the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources (DNCR), is dedicated to teaching about the lives, culture, and labor of enslaved people. During this place-based program (April 26), attendees will experience the landscape, stories, and histories of a site where more than 900 people were enslaved. The day’s learning will center on how enslaved people carved out freedom for themselves and created and sustained cultural traditions that endure today.

Designed for 8th – 12th grade educators new to Stagville who teach about the history of enslavement in North Carolina, the program will include a private guided tour, collaborative work with primary sources and teaching materials, and a special performance by Mary D. Williams, “From Slavery to Freedom.” By day’s end, participants will gain a deeper understanding of how enslaved communities persevered, created, and resisted in the face of profound injustice.

The following evening (April 27), teachers will have the incredible opportunity to attend “Biscuits & Banjos presents: Rhiannon Giddens’ Beloved Community,” a concert featuring African American musical traditions and performances by Rhiannon Giddens, Mavis Staples, Blind Boys of Alabama, Rissi Palmer, and Toshi Reagon. This powerful blend of traditional and contemporary voices highlights Black history and resilience while demonstrating culture’s enduring role in community life today.

ATTENDING EDUCATORS WILL RECEIVE:

• A $50 stipend
• A ticket to “Biscuits & Banjos presents: Rhiannon Giddens’ Beloved Community” at DPAC (up to a $120 value)
• A private tour of Stagville and performance by the acclaimed Mary D. Williams
• 1 CEU
• Access to classroom resources
• The chance to network with other educators, as well as the opportunity to engage with DNCR/Historic Sites staff ready to serve as a source of support for your important work in the classroom!

WHO CAN APPLY?

• This event is designed for 8th - 12th grade teachers of any discipline (social studies, ELA, art, music, etc.) who demonstrate in their application how they teach about the topics of slavery and culture in their classroom.
• The workshop is meant for teachers who are mostly unfamiliar with Stagville (e.g., haven't brought students on a field trip or used their teaching materials.)
• Participants in the April 2025 "Biscuits and Banjos" teacher event are not eligible to apply.
• There are no geographical restrictions to apply, but applicants must be able to arrive at Stagville by 10:00 am on April 26; the day will end at 4 pm.

APPLICATION
Please fill out the form below. Note:

• Late arrivals and early departures cannot be accommodated on April 26. Before submitting an application, please check your schedule and distance to ensure you can arrive by 10 am (at 5828 Old Oxford Highway, Durham, NC, 27712) and that you are able to stay until 4 pm.
• Attendance at Monday's concert is only required if you request a ticket. Applicants can still participate in the workshop at Stagville if they choose not to attend the DPAC concert on April 27. (You will note whether you will attend both in the application below.)
• Space is limited to 15 teachers; filling out this form does not guarantee your registration. Participants will be registered based on a combination of: quality of application responses; clear connection to your work in the classroom; and ensuring a diversity of schools and grade levels represented.
• You should receive a response to your application no later than April 1. (Please hold the dates of this event on your calendar until notifications have been sent.) If after April 1 you have not received a response and a message is not in your junk/spam folder, please contact us at educationoutreach@dncr.nc.gov.
• You will have up to three business days to reply to an acceptance message to confirm your participation. If we do not hear from you, we will assume you are no longer interested, and the spot will be offered to a teacher on the waiting list.

AGENDA

• 10:00 – 10:30 | Welcome & Framing the Day: Why focusing on resistance, resilience, and culture matter when discussing slavery in the classroom
• 10:30 – 12:30 | Seeing Stagville: A tour of the land and activity simulation
• 12:30 – 1:15 | Lunch
• 1:15 – 2:00 | From Slavery to Freedom with Mary D. Williams
• 2:00 – 2:15 | Break
• 2:15 – 3:30 | Curriculum Connections
• 3:30 – 4 pm | Closing

CANCELLATION POLICY
DNCR is committed to providing free professional development to teachers, with not even a small fee or deposit required. However, if you receive a space in this event and you find that you need to cancel at any point, it is critical to let us know immediately and no later than three days before the event by e-mailing educationoutreach@dncr.nc.gov. While this event is offered FREE to teachers, it is costly to the organizers and funders. Last minute cancellations and "no-shows" with no communication result in extreme waste of budget, food, materials, etc., and prevents wait listed teachers from participating. If a registered teacher does not show up or communicate no longer being able to attend, your school may be billed for a $75 no-show fee.

QUESTIONS?
Contact us at educationoutreach@dncr.nc.gov

Apply Here: Voices of Freedom APPLICATION

THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS
This workshop is made possible by the Historic Stagville Foundation and Biscuits & Banjos. It is hosted by Historic Stagville and DNCR's Office of K-12 Education & Outreach.