Perdue Foundation helps fund ‘History In A Box’

Perdue Farms, through a $3,000 grant funded by The Franklin P. and Arthur W. Perdue Foundation, is helping the Eastern Shore of Virginia Historical Society expand the reach of its “History In A Box” educational program to fourth-graders in Accomack and Northampton counties.

Perdue Farms, through a $3,000 grant funded by The Franklin P. and Arthur W. Perdue Foundation, is helping the Eastern Shore of Virginia Historical Society expand the reach of its “History In A Box” educational program to fourth-graders in Accomack and Northampton counties. The Foundation is the charitable giving arm of Perdue Farms.

“The History In A Box program is a fun and innovative way to bring history to the classrooms of today. I would certainly be excited to see what was in the next box that arrived in my classroom if I were a student,” said Kim Nechay, executive director of the Perdue Foundation. “We at Perdue are honored to be a part of that excitement and the benefits of this program for these children.”

The Historical Society’s History Travels Program launched as “History in a Box” in 2012 with handouts and worksheets provided to teachers to allow them to include Eastern Shore history as part of their Virginia Studies and U.S. history curriculum. The project expanded to include educational artifacts and online components to make the make the information accessible to all learning styles.

Today, the History Travels Program focuses on bringing unique Eastern Shore artifacts into the classroom via wooden shipping crates based on an original design used in commercial shipping on the Chesapeake Bay. Students in the Building and Trades Class at Nandua High School built the crates.

“Perdue’s support of History in a Box has helped the Eastern Shore of Virginia Historical Society provide valuable supplemental education for hundreds of students who would otherwise not experience a hands-on learning experience. The program’s focus on local history allows students to understand how their present is shaped by actions of past Eastern Shoremen and women,” said Hilary Hartnett-Wilson, executive director of the Historical Society. “History in a Box will provide a valuable experience for several thousand children on the Eastern Shore: bringing significant historic figures from the past to life and teaching important lessons to the next generation who will become tomorrow’s community leaders and history makers.”

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