Hillsdale's '1776 Curriculum' is a patriotic response to the '1619 Project'

Last week, Hillsdale College announced the rollout of “The Hillsdale 1776 Curriculum,” a cost-free learning tool that helps K-12 students appreciate America’s “unprecedented” achievements.

In response to Nikole Hannah-Jones “1619 Project,” Hillsdale states that the curriculum was created  by “teachers and professors—not activists, not journalists, not bureaucrats,”  and recognizes America as “an exceptionally good country.”

Topics include “American Founding” and the “Civil War,” with future units on the “Progressive Era” and “Modern America” planned, the AP reported on July 21. 

[VIDEO: 1776 Commission vice-chair sounds the alarm on teaching revisionist history in schools]

In the syllabus, Hillsdale President Larry Arnn writes that the project contains a “loving study of the history and principles of our country” with hopes to “cultivate in students the knowledge and virtue necessary to live good lives as citizens.

Kathleen O’Toole, assistant provost for K-12 education at Hillsdale, told Campus Reform that the 1776 Curriculum was “developed over decades,” and has been consistently taught in their college classrooms. 

“The curriculum is a reflection of what is already taught at Hillsdale College and in Hillsdale-affiliated classical schools across the country. The curriculum has been developed over decades,” O’Toole said. 

[EXCLUSIVE: History prof rips New York Times’ 1619 Project for not telling ‘the whole story’]

Referencing slavery and the Civil War, O’Toole added that the curriculum gives “the average American teacher and parent the tools to study our history thoroughly and responsibly, acknowledging both the tragedies and the triumphs in our past… To help teachers share with American students the truth about their country.”

Follow the author of this article on Twitter: @_addisonsmith1