COMMONWEALTH of VIRGINIA
Department of Education
January 23, 2009
TO: Division Superintendents
FROM: Patricia I. Wright, Superintendent of Public Instruction
I am pleased to bring to your attention the recognition of February as African American History Month and March as Women’s History Month. To celebrate both occasions, the Library of Virginia, partnering with Dominion, Capital One, and the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, has mailed to Virginia social studies teachers and history and social science chairpersons in elementary, middle, and high schools the 2009 African American Trailblazers in Virginia History posters and the 2009 Virginia Women in History posters. Posters highlight the state and national contributions of African Americans and Virginia women, including a short biography of each individual honored. The posters are supported by online educational resources suitable for teachers in grades K-12. These can be found at: http://lva.virginia.gov/trailblazers/ and http://lva.virginia.gov/vawomen/.
This year’s honorees are:
2009 African American Trailblazers in Virginia History
2009 Virginia Women in History
For more information about either the African American Trailblazers in Virginia History or the Virginia Women in History projects, please contact Tameka Hobbs at the Library of Virginia, by e-mail at tameka.hobbs@lva.virginia.gov or (804) 371-2126; or Betsy Barton, specialist for history and social science, by e-mail at Betsy.Barton@doe.virginia.gov or telephone at (804) 225-3454.
PIW/BSB/vdg