The Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship

The Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship is a year-long learning adventure for experienced NYC-area high school social studies teachers to help you re-ignite your passion for history, reinvigorate your love for teaching, and connect with a community of similarly motivated colleagues. Through a summer seminar, several intersessions and supportive coaching throughout the year, you will learn how to build rigor, equity - and joy! - into every history lesson.

Matt Bartells

Spring Creek Community High School, Brooklyn, NY

“The Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship has been one of the greatest learning experiences of my teaching career. That is not hyperbole. This has been the first time I have gotten solid skills and content to grow my practice and engage my students intellectually. I have never felt more taken care of, heard and more at ease than at this program. You helped build better teachers and a great community. Thank you.”

Attend a Virtual Info Session!

Meet the team and get your questions answered at live Zoom events in Jan, Feb, and March 2025.

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Reignite Your Passion for History and Learning

Engage with renowned historians

Learn important, equity-centered content on this year’s theme: Long Reconstruction: The African-American Experience 1865-1965

Enjoy field excursions to New York City museums and cultural organizations

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Emily Lake

The High School for Fashion Industries, New York, NY

“The guest speakers were absolutely phenomenal!”

Reinvigorate Your Love for Teaching

Build rigor to build equity

Innovative and engaging pedagogy in close reading, discourse, and historical thinking

Resources, documents, lesson ideas and more

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David Nasser

Uncommon Schools Charter High School, Brooklyn, NY

“So far this has been one of the best professional developments that I've attended. I have improved my craft more in the past few months than I have in my 10 previous years combined.”

Find Your People

Join a diverse community of great social studies teachers who will become cherished colleagues in the work.

Be treated like the professional you are

Feel seen, heard and valued!

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Joseph Davis

Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science

“This program provided me with a community of like-minded individuals who help me feel seen and supported–a community of thought partners who are always willing to share resources and wisdom. I couldn't have asked for a better experience to reinvigorate my passion for teaching and history”

Who attends the Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship?

The program is open to:

High school social studies teachers

With 3+ years of experience (Even teachers with 20+ years have loved it!)

Who live in the New York City area. Participants will be expected to attend programming at the Museum of the City of NY in Manhattan and be available for visits from a coach throughout the year.

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Our cohort hails from different types of schools, including district, charter, private and Catholic schools. Preference is given to teachers who teach in under-resourced communities.

What is the Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship experience?

The Hollyhock Fellowship is a one-year experience, where Fellows will:

Attend our two-week Summer Seminar:

July 21- August 1, 2025

Join four Saturday intersessions:

October 4, 2025; December 6, 2025; March 7, 2026; and May 16, 2026

Receive supportive coaching throughout the year to apply what they have learned

Build community with one another - sharing teaching resources and supporting each others’ growth

Learn more about each exciting part of the program below!

What resources does the Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship provide?

Stipend:

$3000, disbursed throughout the Fellowship

Supportive Coaching:

Video-based and in-person coaching sessions throughout the school year with expert practitioners and peers

Professional Education Credits:

75 CTLE Continuing Education Credits and an opportunity for 4 A+ or P Credits.

Materials:

Access to high quality, resources, primary documents, and professional growth opportunities throughout the school year

Summer Seminar 2025

July 21st - August 1st, 2025

At the Hollyhock Summer Seminar, fellows participate in two weeks of exciting, practice-based professional development, based in rich history content and pedagogy. They learn from renowned historians and examine primary sources and artifacts. The pedagogy sessions focus on building rigor to build equity through methods like:

Facilitating close reading and discourse

Developing historical thinking using the Four Question Method

Integrating equity-focused approaches in our pedagogy

Jesse Curti

Fordham School for the Arts, Bronx, NY

"Overall, I am so happy with the Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship! At first, I was very hesitant about dedicating a full two weeks of my summer to work. However, I was more than rewarded with awesome speakers, solid instruction and great colleagues who became friends. 10/10 recommendation to anyone who wants to step up as a teacher!"

Our content focus for Summer 2025:

The African-American Experience in the Long Reconstruction: 1865-1965.

Summer Seminar Faculty

Prof Eric Foner

Prof. Eric Foner is the DeWitt Clinton Professor Emeritus of History at Columbia University. His work concentrates on the intersections of intellectual, political, and social history, and the history of American race relations. As a national expert, Dr. Foner will be focusing on the history of Reconstruction.

Prof Terry Anne Scott

Professor Terry Anne Scott is the Director of the Institute of Common Power and an award-winning historian, author, and speaker. Dr. Scott’s research interests focus largely on African American social and cultural history, and political and social movements. She will be focusing on the history of lynching and the Great Migration.

Prof. Yohuru Williams

Professor Yohuru Williams is Distinguished University Chair and Professor of History and Founding Director of the Racial Justice Initiative at the University of St. Thomas. His research interests include African American history, civil rights, Black Power movements, African-American constitutional and legal history, and social studies pedagogy. Dr. Williams will focus on Long Reconstruction and the Civil Rights Movement.

Dr. Jon Bassett and Dr. Gary Shiffman

Jon and Gary are the authors of From Story to Judgement: The Four Question Method for Teaching and Learning Social Studies, a text we read for the seminar. Jon and Gary are long-time public school history teachers and they engaged us in learning how to apply this 4QM method to our own instruction.

What Fellows Are Saying:

Edward Acosta

Lincoln Park High School, Newark, NJ

“Loved the lecture by Dr. Foner! Getting intense content knowledge presented by such a qualified professor was excellent.”

Deandra Mason-Nelson

KIPP High School, Bronx NY

“Professor Williams’ session really is at the heart of why I applied to be here...Equity in education is really getting clear about ways to frame complex and contentious historical content.”

Carolyn Ferrari

Energy Tech High School, Long Island City, NY

“The lectures from Professor Scott both days have been both emotionally and intellectually moving. Her insights and resources have truly reframed my ability to teach hard history.”

Summer Seminar Activities

Cultural Institution Visits

Fellows will visit renowned museums and community cultural institutions on guided tours from curators and experts, analyze and interpret the arguments of the exhibits, and explore ways to connect the cultural institution to their classrooms.

For example:

The Museum of the City of NY

The New York Historical Society

The Tenement Museum

Inside Out Tours: Slavery and the Underground Railroad in NYC

The Museum of Modern Art

Jose Estevez

MESA (Math, Engineering, Science Academy) Charter High School

“I enjoyed the trips a lot. I learned a lot about our city's history.”

Shy Burgos

Theater Arts Production Company School

“The trips were a great reminder of the African American history that is already present in the city that we can bring into our classes.”

Professional Development Workshops

Fellows engage in rigorous, practice-based, content pedagogy workshops. Fellows will develop their own lessons and practice executing them and receive feedback from faculty and colleagues. Much of the pedagogy is taught by Jamey Verrilli, who has over 25 years of experience in teaching and leading successful urban schools, and a dozen years experience training teachers.

Joseph Davis

Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science, Bronx NY

“It has given me more in my career than any other professional development opportunity. It has given me community. Reignited my flame for teaching. Given me effective and accessible tools to incorporate into my practice, and surrounded me with loving and caring fellows and coaches.”

Rebecca Egler

KIPP High School, Bronx, NY

“I just really want to say thank you for the best professional development I've gotten in over a decade of teaching.“

Community Building

Fellows will engage in daily community building, and mindfulness activities for their own participation and to learn ones that they can bring back to their students.

Clioria Buchanan

Urban Assembly School for Collaborative Health Care, Brooklyn , NY

“This fellowship ignited my flame and made me realize that teaching is truly an act of love and reminded me of why I became a teacher”

Is the Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship right for me if I don’t teach US history?

Absolutely! Our cohort regularly includes World History, Economics, and Government teachers. We think you will really enjoy learning content that is outside of your regular curriculum and will find connections to your area of expertise. The pedagogical methods are applicable to any social studies course.

During the School Year

Intersessions

Oct. 4th & Dec. 6th, 2025
March 7th & May 16th, 2026

Fellows will participate in four Saturday intersessions throughout the year. These intersessions will continue the learning with practice labs and workshops designed to sharpen your teaching strengths. Fellows will also continue to have guest lecturers and work with New York City cultural organizations.

Shy Burgos

Theater Arts Production Company School

“This was a transformative experience.”

Jesse Curti

Fordham School for the Arts, Bronx, NY

“If I could give 11 out of 10, I would!“

Year-Long Supportive Coaching

Instructional coaching supports Fellows throughout the school year. As part of a networked professional community, fellows will be observed in-person or virtually across the school year with expert instructional coaches. Fellows will upload videos of their classroom teaching in order to discuss and explore ways to strengthen instructional practice. They will share lesson materials, and delve into issues of equity in their classroom, while building a community with each other that enriches their experience in the education profession.

Carmen Cruz

Sunset Park HS, Brooklyn NY

“The support is immeasurable. I feel so validated and supported by my coach. I feel understood and celebrated.”

Joseph Davis

Urban Assembly School for Applied Math and Science

“The coaching comes from such a place of love — a love for both teaching and for developing teachers. My experience in coaching constantly affirmed why I decided to become a teacher in the first place.”

Information Sessions

We encourage you to attend an online information session prior to applying.

JANUARY

Thu Jan. 9, 2025, 6 - 6:30pm
Wed Jan. 15, 2025, 6:30 - 7pm
Tue Jan. 21, 2025, 6:30 - 7pm
Thu Jan. 30, 20245, 6 - 6:30pm

FEBRUARY

‍Wed Feb. 5, 2025, 6:30 - 7pm
Tue Feb. 11, 2025, 6:30 - 7pm
Tues Feb. 25, 2025, 6:30 - 7pm

MARCH

‍Wed Mar. 12, 2025, 6:30pm - 7pm

Register for Info Session

If you can’t make an info session, you can always ask us questions via the interest form.

Ginette Amezquita

Uncommon Charter High School, Brooklyn NY

“Here are my reasons to recommend this program:
1) Access to resources, 2) Building connections among like-minded NYC educators, 3) Elevating the teacher profession, 4) This program can be instrumental in ensuring higher teacher retention rates across all NYC schools.”

Nominate a Teacher

Do you know a teacher or teachers who would be interested in this program? Nominate them, and we will reach out personally to invite them to apply!

Nomination Form

Daryn Cohen

Urban Assembly School for Law and Justice, Brooklyn, NY

“I could not have asked for much more. I am reinvigorated as a teacher, I have a ton of new tools in my tool belt, I have new colleagues and friends to bounce these ideas off of, and a great support system!”

Application Information

Eligibility Requirements

Be a high school history or social studies teacher (Teachers from any curricula are welcome - including government, economics, and world history)
Have at least three years of teaching experience.
Maintain at least a part-time classroom teaching position at your current school site for the duration of the fellowship
Attend the Summer Seminar
Participate in and prepare fully for all of the school-year, coaching sessions, and Saturday workshops
Have access to a computer that can support the technology interface
Preference is given to teachers who teach in under-resourced communities with greater than 50% of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch.

Criteria for Selection

A belief in equitable outcomes for all students
A belief in personal responsibility to work for those equitable outcomes for all students
Demonstrated growth mindset to continuously improve with openness to feedback and a willingness to practice and to be videoed while teaching.
Investment in collaborating with a community of colleagues
Support from school administration to participate fully during the summer seminar and school year and bring what you learned back to your school

Application Timeline

Applications open on Dec. 1st, 2024 and we have rolling admissions through April 7th, 2025.

‍Round 1: Application due by Feb. 3rd, 2025, acceptance by Feb. 14th, 2025‍
Round 2: Application due Mar. 3rd, 2025 acceptance by Mar. 14th, 2025‍
Final Round: Application due April 7th, acceptance by April 18th, 2025

Apply Now

When and where are the Summer Seminar and the Saturday Intersessions?

In 2025, the Hollyhock Summer Seminar will be held:

July 21st- July 25th and July 28- Aug. 1 2025
Classes will run from 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM.
There are no classes on the weekends.

The Saturday Intersessions will take place on:

Oct. 4 & Dec. 6, 2025 and March 7 & May 16, 2026
They will run from 9:30am to 4:30pm

Both the Summer Seminar and intersessions will be held in-person at The Museum of the City of New York, 1220 Fifth Avenue, NY, NY 10029

How do I contact Relay about the Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship?

To request more information, please email us at jverrilli@relay.edu and put “Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship” in the subject line.

When are the Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship applications available?

Applications open for the 2025-26 cohort on December 1, 2024.

Should I apply if I am not sure I can make a commitment to participate in all activities in summer and across the year?

We prefer that teachers only apply if they can fully commit to attending the entire two-week summer seminar, the Year-long coaching and Saturday workshops.

Is the Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship only for US History Teachers?

The content focus of the Hollyhock Fellowship (The Long Reconstruction- The African-American Experience 1865-1965) is focused on US History. But all social studies teachers (including global, government and economics teachers) are invited to apply for four reasons:

1. The Long Reconstruction period is important history for all teachers to know.

2. Our pedagogy sessions focus on broadly applicable skills and concepts such as document use, close reading, discourse, and equity which will surely be useful in your classroom.

3. Our supportive coaching will align to whatever curriculum you are teaching .

4. We know that teaching careers are fluid - you may find yourself teaching US history in the future!

What is the difference between the Stanford Hollyhock Fellowship and the Relay Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship?

The Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship is a special program hosted by the Relay Graduate School of Education for experienced humanities teachers in the New York Metro area. It is designed to focus on developing just high school history/social studies teachers. The Hollyhock Fellowship is a one-year program. The Stanford Hollyhock program is a national two-year program hosted by Stanford University’s Center to Support Excellence in Teaching for school-based teams of teachers in English, History, Math and Science. Both programs are possible because of the generous support of the Hollyhock Foundation.

Why is the eligibility only for teachers who have at least 3 years of teaching experience?

Experienced teachers need support and opportunities for growth to help them thrive in the classroom. We want to work with teachers who are still seeking to grow and improve for their students and to help them become much-needed teacher leaders in their schools.

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For the 2024-25 school year, we only offer fellowships to high school teachers who teach in history/social studies.

What is a typical day like at the Hollyhock Summer Seminar?

The Institute typically runs from 9:00 am until 4:30 pm Monday through Friday with additional opportunities for socializing and community-building activities on the weekday evenings. Fellows will attend classes at the Relay Graduate School of Education Campus on 25 Broadway in lower Manhattan. We will have professional development sessions where we deep-dive into content, participate in daily intellectual discourse on relevant topics and work on practice-based pedagogy. Daily coffee, beverages, snacks and lunch will be provided each day. There will also be afternoon trips to NY’s renowned cultural institutions on certain days of the week.

Our hope is that all these experiences will build a community of teaching professionals that lasts long after the two-week summer institute ends.

What kinds of things do I need to do to prepare for the summer institute if I am accepted?

Fellows are invited to write a short biography about themselves and their school for our website. Additionally, we will send out 2 short books to read and we will ask you to read specific documents and to review others in a collection of primary source documents.

How do the continuing education units (CTE’s) I earn at Relay Hollyhock get documented?

Relay will email each Hollyhock Fellow a transcript with a record of the CTE’s earned after each summer and each school year. Fellows can use this transcript as verification of their professional learning hours from Hollyhock. Please note that these are not graduate credits as fellows are not enrolled at Relay as graduate students. Hollyhock fellows will also need to keep track of their own CTE documentation throughout the fellowship.

May I apply if I am a SPED or ESL teacher?

If you are a SPED or ESL educator who teaches history/social studies then you may apply. At this time, we do not offer separate sessions for SPED or ESL teachers.

2024-25 Hollyhock Cohort

Hollyhock Humanities Fellowship is excited to welcome these educators from NY and NJ to learn and grow together as a community. Click on each photo to see their Teaching Superpower!

View Teaching Superpower

Ayesha Sayyeda

Washington Park High School, Newark, NJ

Teaching Superpower

I put humor within my lessons, this allows for students to be engaged and look at history in a whole new light.

Ayesha Sayyeda

Washington Park High School, Newark, NJ

View Teaching Superpower

Matthew Silber

Unity Preparatory Charter School, Brooklyn, NY

Teaching Superpower

Strong emphasis on warm relationships with high expectations.

Matthew Silber

View Teaching Superpower

Ladan Ziaee

Benjamin Banneker Academy, Brooklyn, NY

Teaching Superpower

I work collaboratively to offer great learning opportnities for my students. I am always avialable for them.

Ladan Ziaee

Benjamin Banneker Academy, Brooklyn, NY

Learn more

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complete an interest form

Ready to Apply?

Applications are now open for the 2025-26 cohort. We look forward to getting to know you!

2024-25 Application