Documentary Film Wins 2009 CSAA Artistry Award
The Country School Association of America has selected the WBGU-PBS’s
documentary Days of the One Room Schoolhouse as the recipient of the annual 2009 CSAA Scholarship and
Artistry Award for the best essay, thesis/dissertation, book, website, or video
on any aspect of country schooling.
The film aired at the 2009 Country School Conference held June 15-17 at St. Vincent College in Latrobe, PA. Participants, all schoolhouse enthusiasts, offered their highest praise for the thorough and touching treatment of our nation's beloved icons of education. Most impressive were rare photographs and film clips never seen before by members of the audience.
Days of the One Room Schoolhouse tells the story of
Northwest and West Central Ohio schools that once peppered the Midwestern
states. This documentary relates their history, how they changed over time and
what a typical school day was like through interviews with those who remember
life in the one room schools. Veteran Toledo news
anchor Jim Blue is the narrator.
“One
room schools played an important part in our local history,” says WBGU-PBS
Producer/Director Tom Zapiecki, who wrote and edited the documentary. “But they
were also a model for public education in areas settled after Ohio.”
Re-enactments
inside one room schools at Sauder Village in Archbold, with additional footage
of the Zimmerman School in Bowling Green, provided by the Wood County Park
District bring history to life.
The
documentary includes tours of a variety of Ohio one room schools, including a
home that was originally a one room school.
“One
room schools are something nearly everyone can relate to because they
frequently see the remnants of one room schoolhouses as they drive throughout
the region,” Zapiecki adds. “Schools were built about two miles apart so no one
had to walk too far for school.”
Zapiecki
produced the documentary with the hope that this program would encourage people
to learn more about the one room schoolhouses in their area and what they can
do to protect and preserve them so their legacy lives on.
TO ORDER YOUR COPY OF "DAYS OF THE ONE ROOM SCHOOLHOUSE" DVD- CLICK ON THE DVD PICTURE ABOVE!
Questions?
Tom Zapiecki's e-mail:
zapiecki@wbgu.bgsu.edu
Submitted by Dr. Lucy Townsend
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