Dear colleagues and friends:
We are very excited about an initiative that will help us meet our goals and benefit the communities we serve. Americans All has twin objectives—to preserve legacies and enhance education.
Inspired by author and historian David McCullough’s belief that “history is the story of people,” Americans All has created a Social Legacy Network to celebrate the contributions that people have made and continue to make to our nation’s development and growth. Network members can create and share online a story about themselves, their family or others important to them in multiple languages and with photographs and videos. The Internet has now made it possible to preserve these legacy stories forever, at minimal cost.
The program also gives network members access to an education app that provides credible information on American history. This technology allows families to help their students succeed in school and become informed citizens.
A one-time, tax-deductible membership fee of just $39 pays for the legacy story, education app and other benefits. The program will invest 85 percent of membership fees to support excellence in social studies education.
Supporting excellence in social studies education is critical, because the cornerstone of democracy is an informed citizenry. Through such instruction, students develop creative and critical-thinking skills and learn how to evaluate different perspectives, assess the validity of evidence and apply facts in decision-making.
In recent years, however, the emphasis in public education has shifted to math and science, which has reduced the funds available for history and civics. In response, Americans All will compile and use its education app to distribute databases of grade-level-specific social studies resources in multiple perspectives that support state content standards.
Families joining the Americans All Social Legacy Network can publish and preserve, on the Foundation School’s Americans All home page, the life/legacy stories their students write about themselves, their family or others important to them. The story can be enhanced with photographs, audio and video recordings and links to other Web sites, and it can be updated at any time. Writing these stories can be an extremely important esteem-building exercise for students. Students’ stories will also be published on the Americans All’s Heritage Honor Roll and on the home pages of local businesses and service providers that comprise its Legacy Partner Alliance. An additional benefit to member families is electronic access to the resource databases developed for schools.
We encourage you to use the tool bar at the top of this page to explore the Americans All Social Legacy Network Web site and learn about the benefits available to your family when you join the network. You can also click on one of the provided links to take advantage of membership benefits. Finally, you can share this information with colleagues and friends by visiting our recommend/invitation page and selecting the appropriate e-mail link.