Always striving to enhance his students' educational experience, Matthew Fulford earned his MA in history at CU Denver in order to bring CU Denver Succeed classes, a program that allows students to take college-level transferable courses, to his students at Denver East High School. Throughout the MA program, Matthew was inspired by the focus on historical research and the hands-on methodology that was taught at CU Denver, and brought the research-based approach back to his classrooms. He reflected on how that has allowed students to follow their interests and passions and be more engaged with history while teaching them how history is “done” instead of simply learning the facts.
Matthew's leadership and commitment to student development are evident in his role in the National History Day program's success. He has collaborated with CU Denver to organize this program, which immerses students in historical research projects , emphasizing critical reading and thinking, research, analysis, and the drawing of meaningful conclusions. Last year, he played a pivotal role in hosting the Denver regional competition at Denver East High School, and he continues to support his own students in the program.
Further encouraging critical hands-on learning and giving high school students a collegiate advantage, Matthew sponsors a museum club at his school where students can delve into research, learn proper archiving and how to conduct oral histories and learn more about public history. The museum club partnered with the CU Denver public history program and paired graduate students with high school students to create online and physical exhibits about Denver East High School History. This program allows students to have real-world experiences within public history and mentorship with CU Denver graduate students.
Matthew's partnership with CU Denver and connection to the history department's MA programs have allowed him to make his classes more engaging and help support his students through mentorships and connections to the university. He plans to continue to inspire students to engage with history and realize that history is not done; it is more of a debate.
Explore a digital exhibit created by Denver East Highschool Students and the University of Colorado Denver https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/829cbe8a1c9543c58eb4a6fc9ecea971
-- Jade Leveille