Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History: Giving Access to Online K-12 Curriculums, Educational Artifacts and Exhibits, Teacher Training
The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History in NYC is the leading nonprofit organization dedicated to K–12 history education while also serving the general public.
Founded in 1994 by lifelong supporters of American history education Richard Gilder and Lewis E. Lehrman, its mission is to promote the knowledge and understanding of American history through educational programs and resources. Our ground-up redesign of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History’s interactive strategy includes two distinct, interrelated websites, an educational portal, as well as an online store.
At the Institute’s core is one of the great archives in American history—more than 70,000 documents and objects. Paired with an extensive network of eminent historians, the Institute provides teachers, students, and the general public with direct access to unique primary source materials.
The Gilder Lehrman Institute required a creative strategy to increase access to their deep archive of historic artifacts among a growing network of teachers, students, scholars, and supporters.
The public-facing websites encompass a searchable database of archival materials, online exhibitions, videos, lesson plans, and the online journal History Now. All were created with a keen understanding of the history of graphic design, allowing The Institute to envision their future while educating students about the past.
Our web-based platform is designed to simplify the complex exchange of information around The Institute’s programs. We began by simplifying the input/output of participant data. And then turned to their online interactions—educators’ professional development courses and student research, courses, and quizzes.
Our creative strategy promotes and celebrates accomplishments in American history education and scholarship—while deepening audiences’ understanding and appreciation through measurable participatory features.
The UX/UI of these features are designed with a keen understanding of the history of graphic and interactive design—allowing Gilder Lehrman to envision their future while celebrating the past. The platform, built on Drupal and CiviCRM, is also responsive to whether a visitor is using their smartphone, tablet or desktop.
Features fostering measurable interaction include:
A mobile responsive ➜ public-facing website with a searchable and filterable database of over 60,000 archival materials, online exhibitions, videos, lesson plans, and the online journal History Now
A responsive ➜ Affiliate School Program portal providing free resources and opportunities for registered K–12 teachers and students
Educators’ professional development ➜ Self-Paced online courses offering graduate-level online instruction in American history by eminent historians
A ➜ history shop featuring reproductions of historic artifacts in The Institute’s collection
A constituent relationship management database managing all constituent profiles and interactions with The Institute
The Institute has grown participation in its programs and now manages a relationship management database of over 300,000 constituents. Their staff autonomously adds hundreds of new historical artifacts and dozens of articles each year. Thousands of educators apply for slots in various professional development programs through the forms and approval workflows.
The platform is built on the Drupal content management system integrated with the CiviCRM constituent relationship management.
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History online exhibition:
Slavery and Abolition: People, Places, Politics: History in a Box, 2009