Bringing History Home

Dorothy Blanks, Ph.D.

Dr. Dorothy Blanks is on faculty at Western Governor’s University, teaching in the College of Education.  Her primary courses are Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment as well as Social Studies and Science Methods.  She earned her Ph.D. at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.  Her dissertation focused on global education and drama pedagogy concerning women who won the Nobel Peace Prize.  Dr. Blanks’ master’s thesis contrasted modern gender role stereotypes between a traditionally patrilineal culture (Taiwan) and matrilineal culture (Guam).  A bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Washington preceded her graduate studies.  Her primary research interests center on global education, multi-cultural education, and middle school pedagogy.

Dr. Blanks was a middle school teacher in international schools located in Budapest, Hungary; Moscow, Russia; and Dededo, Guam.  She taught social studies, language arts, and science with an emphasis on integrated, cross-disciplinary studies.  Dorothy was a “third-culture child”, attending high school in Seoul, Korea.  She currently lives in Greeneville, TN.

Jacqueline Comas, Ph.D.

Jacqueline Comas currently serves as a Course Instructor at Western Governors University. She received her Ph.D. in Language/Literacy Education at Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana and postdoctoral studies at Oxford University, Oxford, England.

Dr. Comas’ portfolio of professional experiences include:

1) Teaching and Research assignments in USA, China, Brazil, Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, and England

2) Director of Reading Literacy programs at The George Washington University, Washington, DC

3) Past President of an affiliate of the International Literacy Association

4) Director of Research for Bibliotherapy and Reading-International Reading Association

5) Member of the Composition Theory Committee for the National Council of Teachers of English

6) Keynote speaker for national and international conferences on language, reading, and literacy

7) Editorial Director for Documentary Film Productions

8) Published author and editorial consultant

S.G. Grant, Ph.D.

S. G. Grant is a Professor of Social Studies Education at Binghamton University in Binghamton, NY. His research interests lie at the intersection of state curriculum and assessment policies and teachers’ classroom practices, with a particular emphasis in social studies.  

Grant has published nine books including History Lessons: Teaching, Learning, and Testing in U.S. High School Classrooms (2003; Lawrence Erlbaum), Measuring History: Cases of State-Level Testing Across the United States (2006; Information Age Publishing), Teaching History with Big Ideas: Cases of Ambitious Teachers (2010; Rowman & Littlefield), and, with colleagues Kathy Swan and John Lee, Inquiry-Based Practice in Social Studies Education (2017; Routledge), and Inquiry Design Model: Building Inquiries in Social Studies (2018; National Council for the Social Studies).

He won the Exemplary Research Award from the National Council for the Social Studies in 2004 for his History Lessons book. Grant served as senior consultant and writer on the College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Framework for State Social Studies Standards and as the project manager for the New York Social Studies Resource Toolkit project. His publications have appeared in Theory and Research in Social Education, Social Education, Teachers College Record, and the American Educational Research Journal.

Julie Grotewold, M.S.

Julie Grotewold is a retired educator from Iowa.  She began her career as an elementary classroom teacher in grades kindergarten through fourth.  Julie worked as a curriculum specialist offering consultation to rural schools in Iowa while employed at Southern Prairie Area Education Agency in Ottumwa, Iowa.   She moved into school administration serving as a principal at an alternative high school and Assistant Superintendent in the Washington Community School District in Washington, Iowa.  She finalized her career as a Regional Administrator at Grant Wood Area Education Agency in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

While working in the Washington School District, Julie had the opportunity to support the Bringing History Home Project during its pilot and subsequent implementation in Iowa. 

Julie completed her undergraduate degree at Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa.  She earned a Masters in Curriculum and Instruction from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, and endorsements in School Administration and Educational Leadership from Drake University.

Julie is retired and currently living in Cape Coral, FL.