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RI Heritage Harbor Foundation
Competition part of local nonprofit???s new educational program
The Steamship Historical Society of America (SSHSA) is looking for high school students and teachers to seek inspiration from its new interactive website, and maybe even be rewarded with a cash prize.??
Following awards from the National Maritime Heritage Grant Program and the Rhode Island-based Heritage Harbor Foundation, SSHSA has spent the last year developing www.shiphistory.org, a public resource aimed at educating students about our country???s maritime heritage while enforcing the subjects of science, technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM) in high schools across the country.
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Titled ???STEAMing into the Future,??? the website focuses on a period beginning in 1807 when the first commercially viable steam-powered ship began providing regularly scheduled service. This began the transition from sail to steam-powered vessels and transformed shipping, commerce, culture and travel across America. Using materials from the SSHSA archives, students work directly with primary sources to better understand these changes and how they continue to influence us today.
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While the website won???t officially launch until the spring, SSHSA is looking for classrooms willing to try out some of the modules, lessons, videos and archives that are available, and create maritime artwork based on what they???ve learned. Teachers and students are encouraged to share their thoughts on the materials, creating a space for educators to collaborate within the site.
Teachers must register with SSHSA Education Coordinator Aimee Bachari at steam@sshsa.org by February 15. All student artwork must be submitted by April 15, and winners will be announced on National Maritime Day on May 22. Cash prizes of $250, $150 and $100 will be awarded to first, second and third place, respectively.
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The contest is named in honor of the late Donald Stoltenberg, a Cape Cod based artist who died in 2016. He was renowned for his oil and watercolor paintings, and perfected a printmaking technique known as Collagraphy, where delicate, precise surfaces are layered onto a flat printing plate, giving depth to the final image as the textured plate is pressed into the paper. The prize money comes from a generous gift given in Stoltenberg???s name by longtime friend and SSHSA member Rik Rabbett of Boston.
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Bachari has been largely responsible for the creation of this new educational tool. She earned a bachelor???s degree in history from UMass-Dartmouth and a master???s degree from the University of Houston, where she worked on several public history and digital projects. She is currently working on a PhD in history and recently attended an immersive web development boot camp, where she learned how to develop web applications.??
About SSHSA: A national organization dedicated to the history of engine-powered ships, SSHSA opened its Ship History Center in Warwick in 2015. The roughly 8,000-square-foot center on Post Road allows the public to experience some of the bells and whistles of steamships, along with its extensive archive of images, artifacts periodicals, artwork, official records and memorabilia. For more information, visit www.sshsa.org