In early February of this year, social studies department chair Mr. Dan Brown was awarded the Patricia E. Taylor Teaching Award for International Experience. The Pat Taylor Teaching award is named in honor of Ms. Patricia Taylor, founder, teacher, and administrator who dedicated herself to the MLWGS community in her decades of service. The grant, with funding up to $7,500, is funded by the Governor’s School Foundation, but the recipient of the grant itself is selected by a separate committee consisting of educators and community members.

Brown, this year’s recipient and longtime Maggie Walker social studies instructor, will use the grant to travel to the German cities of Munich, Berlin, Bonn, Cologne, Dachau, Nuremberg, and Potsdam, where he will study Germany’s history and the evolution of the country’s system of government. He plans to do this by carefully observing and interpreting each city’s monuments, museum collections, and culturally-rich architecture. His proposal is titled, “Monuments, Museums, Memorials, and Architecture: What They Tell Us About Germany’s Evolution as a Social Democracy.”

While Brown’s interest in Germany was initially spurred when he was in the fourth grade, his more recent endeavors truly nourished his desire to learn more about the country. His graduate course on the Weimar Republic and his teaching of AP Comparative Government & Politics to Maggie Walker students rekindled his interest in the country.

With a developing itinerary, his plans include stays in Munich, Berlin, Bonn, Venice, and Prague, but Brown comments that his most valuable lessons from travel have always been “the most unanticipated things.” As of now, he has a particular interest in investigating activities related to the Cold War, and he hopes to expand his knowledge on Germany’s four main systems of government and the political and social forces that have shaped the Germany we see today.

Using his first-hand experience in Germany, Brown hopes to “apply items beyond reading selections to the classroom experience.” By examining the historical sites to understand Germany’s political structures over the past 150 years, Brown aspires to pass this knowledge to his Maggie Walker students. In addition, his hope is to make connections that will enable MLWGS students to hear directly from German political figures, either in person or through Zoom.

Overall, Mr. Brown’s extensive study of German history, society, and government will impact MLWGS students in profound ways, expanding their worldview and bringing them a more authentic understanding of the country. The Pat Taylor Teaching Award is given to teachers who exemplify commitment to not only their area of study but also to their students and the greater Maggie Walker community. Brown embodies this commitment, and he continues to represent a meaningful aspect of education at MLWGS through his willingness to expand his knowledge on global history.