2 Port Chester H.S. Teachers Set For Prestigious Summer Study Opportunities

social studies teachers Edward Waite and Marc Latasa have each been accepted into exclusive professional studies programs for the summer.

Waite was accepted into two programs. The first is “The Environment and the Economy” – a program given by the Foundation for Teaching Economics and the Vermont Economic and Environment Institute.  The second is a study/tour program on the Holocaust which will take him to Germany and Poland.  That program is offered by The Westchester-Lower Hudson Valley Social Studies Conference.  

“In 1992, I completed a Fulbright program in the Netherlands where I was given the opportunity to visit the Anne Frank Museum and meet with Meips who helped the Frank family during their two years in hiding before they were captured and sent to the Concentration Camps,” said Waite.  “This started my interest in the Holocaust and human rights issues.  Since then I have brought my students to Holocaust and human rights programs here in Westchester as part of our course work.”

Waite teaches AP World History, Honors Global History 2 and Micro/Macro Economics at the high school and is completing his 24th year in the district.

Latasa will attend “The Empire City!” given by The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History at Columbia University.  One of only 80 educators selected from more than 400 applicants, Latasa will study the growth of American cities through the lens of New York City and its transformation from a tiny settlement to the center of capitalism and the world’s largest metropolis.  

Latasa teaches Global History and the History of New York City as a senior elective.  He has been teaching for 15 years and has been a member of the high school social studies department since 2000.  He is currently writing a textbook on New York City.

“It is surprising the number of students who do not know how to use the subway or get around New York City,” says Latasa. “Many of them will be going to school or work there and the History of NYC course prepares them for that.  A key component is a series of field trips where students have to figure out how to get around Manhattan.  It prepares them for life after graduation.”