Hip Hop as Humanities: Counterstories for the Canon, Classroom, and Country 

Join Dr. H. Bernard Hall, Assistant Professor of Urban Teacher Education and Dr. Kareem Edouard, Assistant Professor of Learning Technologies in Drexel University’s School of Education for a provocative three-week hybrid National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Institute for K-12 Teachers that combines two weeks of virtual workshops with a one-week residential component in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (July 2024).

The application deadline is March 5, 2025.

Hip Hop as Humanities: Counterstories for the Canon, Classroom, and Country is a three-week hybrid summer institute for 25 secondary ELA (or history) teachers. The Institute is curated by H. Bernard Hall and Kareem Edouard, education professors in Drexel University’s School of Education, and leading scholars in the field of Hip Hop Based Education. Through readings, authentic dialogues, professional development workshops, critical self-reflection, and collaboration, participants will work towards the goal of understanding the myriad ways Hip Hop as Humanities can promote civic engagement, social cohesion, and cross-cultural understanding for themselves, as well as their students. 

Institute Overview 

• The first week of virtual sessions will focus on examining the cultural and human contexts of post-Civil Rights era urban America (1968-1988). With the help of guest lecturers, participants will be introduced to seminal authors and texts in the field of Hip Hop Cultural Studies with the objective of investigating Hip Hop’s history, arts, philosophy, language, and literatures.
• During the second week, the investigation of Hip Hop as Humanities will be scaffolded towards professional development on teaching and learning Hip Hop as Humanities in secondary ELA classrooms.
• Led by educational specialists from across the country, the virtual professional development workshops are designed to equip participants with the knowledge and skills to curate Hip Hop as Humanities “Playlists” (unit plans) that they will use in their classrooms (and disseminate to larger audiences)
• To accomplish the Institute’s goal of building a community that extends beyond the summer, the third week will be structured in a residential format in Philadelphia Pennsylvania on the campus of Drexel University.
• To gain a more robust understanding of the research started in Week 1 and professional development in Week 2, teachers will engage in a place-based learning experience in the South Bronx.
• The ILLEST Lab, a Hip Hop makerspace located in Drexel University’s School of Education (also co-directed by Hall and Edouard), will serve as the Institute’s hub for the final week. In this space, teachers will reflect on their visit to the Bronx and work collaboratively to finalize, and ultimately present their playlists to fellow participants and Drexel University faculty and graduate students.
• See Institute Resources for additional details.

The Hip Hop as Humanities Institute for K-12 Educators has been made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom.

Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this project, do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.