Neenah and Menasha elementary students will have a piece of hometown history in their hands for the 2018-19 school year.

Charles Clark, co-founder of Kimberly-Clark

With the help of a $10,000 Bright Idea Fund grant from the Community Foundation, Wisconsin Public Television was able to create educational, multimedia resources that complement the Wisconsin Hometown Stories: Neenah-Menasha documentary.

The materials include a historic map of Neenah and Menasha, a five-minute animated video and printable, level-specific booklets on the rags-to-riches story of Kimberly-Clark co-founder Charles Clark. The materials are intended for grades three through eight and are accessible to Neenah and Menasha and educators across the state at no cost.

Historic map of Neenah-Menasha

The Wisconsin Public Television education team collaborated with Wisconsin educators to create the resources. They used educators’ ideas and feedback to guide the production of the resources. The creators of the study guides expect that students knowing their hometown history will help them connect to their past.

“Knowing our past helps us develop a greater understanding of where we came from and can help develop a greater connection to one’s community,” said Eric Greiling, Director of Development for Wisconsin Public Television.

Since the project was launched in March 2018, there has been a tremendous amount of positive feedback from the community and local educators.

“The Wisconsin Hometown Stories: Neenah-Menasha has allowed my students to see their local history in a storytelling manner. Students are able to see places or hear about people from their community and are then able to share the story with their families,” said Debbie Burmeister, a fourth-grade teacher at Tullar Elementary School in the Neenah Joint School District.

“These are the items that make the connections for my 4th-grade students that really resonate for a long time,” Debbie added.

“The Wisconsin Hometown Series has made history come alive for our students,” said Grace Davis, an eighth-grade teacher at Shattuck Middle School in Neenah. “They don’t just read about what happened, but they are able to see history all around them.”

See the Wisconsin Hometown Stories: Neenah-Menasha documentary and other complementary resources.

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