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Project Details

Voices of Democracy (VOD) is the premier online curriculum resource for the study of great speeches in U.S. history. Originally funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the site boasts a collection of more than 80 authenticated texts of significant speeches, along with audio or video recordings in many cases. Each speech is accompanied by a critical essay providing historical context, a rhetorical analysis of the text, and reflections on the speech’s impact and legacy, along with a collection of teaching and learning materials, including discussion questions, research ideas, and a list of published, audio-visual, and online sources relating to each speech. The site also has a growing collection of lesson plans for secondary educators.

Subjects or Themes

Great speeches in American history

Project Language(s)

English

Time Period

Geographic Location

Project Categories

Content Type

Authenticated speech texts, audio/visual materials, critical/scholarly essays, teacher resources.

Target Audience(s)

Creators

J. Michael Hogan, Edwin Erle Sparks Professor Emeritus of Rhetoric, Penn State University.
Shawn Parry-Giles, Professor of Communication and Director, Rosenker Center for Political Communication and Civic Leadership, University of Maryland.

Year(s)

2006

Host Institution / Affiliation / Project Location

University of Maryland

Software Employed

  • WordPress
  • Technical aspects managed by Academic Webpages. Not sure about all the software they use.

Labor and Support

VOD includes contributions from more than 100 teachers and scholars of history and rhetoric, and we employ two or three graduate editorial and technical assistants each year. It is an ongoing project, adding new content continuously.

Project Cost

Partnerships, funding sources, or grant-funding acknowledgement

National Endowment for the Humanities, Teaching and Learning Resources Grant, 2006-2008. National Communication Association, Advancing the Discipline Grant, 2008. National Endowment for the Humanities, Challenge Grant, 2013-2016. Ongoing support provided by the Center for Democratic Deliberation and the McCourtney Institute for Democracy at Penn State, and the Rosenker Center for Political Communication and Civic Leadership at the University of Maryland.