The mission of the Teaching with Primary Sources at Northwest Missouri State University Program (TPSNWMSU) is to work collaboratively with rural school districts, individual schools, various educators, state and national professional organizations, and TPS Consortium Members to advance the ongoing work of the members of the TPS Educational Consortium. This project seeks to connect rural educators with the Library of Congress by
providing culturally relevant workshops to familiarize teachers with sources from the Library of Congress that highlight rural America. Teachers will also learn inquiry-based practices for using primary sources to amplify their own histories and collaborate on new ways to incorporate primary sources into their curriculum. The project will also provide ongoing professional development through webinars, a YouTube channel, a website, conference presentations, and professional publications in journals and books. To increase sustainability, the project will develop TPS-NWMSU coaches who will provide professional development on the same topics in districts throughout the rural regions of NW Missouri, NE Kansas, SE Nebraska, and SW Iowa, while also connecting rural teachers in the region to collaborate, co-create, share ideas, and network.