Arts and Humanities Commons^™

A Matter Of The Soul: Our Human Relationship To Trees In Nebraska, Ariana Brocious

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

We love trees. We connect with them more closely, relate to them more intimately, than almost any other plant. Nebraska, in the country’s heartland, may be known today for its fields of corn, soybeans, and cattle. But for the last 200 years, Nebraskans have also labored to fill their prairie state with trees. This obsession has touched all kinds of things: tax incentives, state slogans, farming practices, rural homeownership, urban water bills, state celebrations, land use and conservation.

A Matter of the Soul: Our Human Relationship to Trees in Nebraska is a work of narrative nonfiction that looks at how …

Teaching Place: Heritage, Home And Community, The Heart Of Education, Judy Kay Lorenzen

Department of English: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This dissertation examines the implementation of a Place-conscious pedagogy as a means to teach heritage and sense of place. This pedagogy is framed upon the premise that trying to understand our heritage and place—ourselves—are crucial elements in our ability to live well as individuals who are connected school/community members, who help our schools/communities thrive, becoming Place-conscious citizens. I argue that in teaching in such a culturally diverse community, tensions rise as immigration has become a main focus. Our school/community has experienced many ethnic groups with vast social differences for which Place-conscious education offers practical solutions. These students have a great …