About Teachers Institute

Teachers Institute

The Institute is generally a two-day event held each summer in Boise and teachers traveling from northern or eastern Idaho receive financial assistance.  In 2017, the Institute sought funds to create an online repository for gathering lesson plans to share --- the OER for Civics and Government Teachers. The repository of lesson plans is hosted on this website. Teachers submitting lessons that qualify for the OER received stipend for their extra work.

At the conclusion of the Institute, teachers were invited to submit written evaluations of their two-day experiences. The evaluations were generally very favorable and often enthusiastic. The majority of survey respondents strongly agreed that the Institute was well organized, provided a good learning environment, and adequately communicated with participants. They also strongly agreed that the Institute offered a variety of workshops that were interesting or would help them with teaching or professional development. A highlight for many of the teachers (and for presenters and organizers able to attend) was the Nate v. Denney oral argument at the Idaho Supreme Court. Chief Justice Burdick and Sara Thomas were instrumental in arranging for the teachers to attend the proceedings.