Ursuline College to develop course on 'Rust Belt Revival'

Ursuline College announced it will receive a National Endowment for the Humanities grant to support the development of new courses focused on social solutions to Rust Belt problems of poverty, discrimination, neglect, and population decline.

The $34,586 NEH grant will enable the faculty at the Pepper Pike college -- in collaboration with invited community partners -- to develop these creative new courses while balancing existing teaching schedules, according to a news release. The courses will emphasize digital skills, mapping, and storytelling to analyze the history of the region.

“We are thrilled that NEH reviewers see the value in our project and are giving us the opportunity to develop these courses,” said English Department Chair Katharine Trostel, one of three faculty directors of the project.

“Our intention is to create meaningful learning experiences for our students, giving them the intellectual framework to engage locally with the community as problem-solvers and critical thinkers in Cleveland’s specific cultural context,” she said in the release.

She said student findings from this project, titled "Cleveland Divided: Rust Belt Revival," will be shared with the public.