Accessibility Alert - Elevator Outage

Elevator access to Ford’s Theatre and Ford’s Theatre Museum is unavailable through June 30, 2021, while repairs are underway.

Learn More

National Oratory Fellows

Professional Development Program for Teachers of Grades 5-8
Skip remaining navigation

Start of content

Inspired by Abraham Lincoln’s oratory, National Oratory Fellows are a network of teachers who cultivate student voices in Grades 5-8 by making public speaking a part of the everyday classroom experience.

Drawing on Abraham Lincoln’s legacy and example as a powerful orator, you will work closely with our teaching artists and staff to learn the art and science behind compelling and effective public speaking. You will also develop your own powerful voice as a teacher. As a fellow, you will develop and strengthen skills to teach text analysis, public speaking, performance and speech writing in your classroom.

A cohort of five fellows begins the August prior to each school year, becoming part of a national network of supportive and like-minded educators. Video conferencing is used to connect fellows and Ford’s staff, and to create an online meeting space for active and collaborative conversations.

Fellows travel to Washington, D.C., twice a year to plan and share work. At times throughout the program, they bring student delegates with them to learn and perform on the stage of Ford’s Theatre. You will need internet access and a webcam to participate in this fellowship.

The application window for the 2021-22 National Oratory Fellows cohort has closed. The application for the 2022-23 cohort will open Monday, January 17, 2022.

Testimonial

“The program has made me a better, more confident teacher...I believe it to be the finest professional development experience of my career.”

- Dave McIntire, The Independent School

DISTANCE LEARNING ORATORY OPPORTUNITY

Lincoln Online Oratory Project

Learn and Speak Lincoln’s Words

Not ready to be a Fellow? Try this instead! Your class receives three Teaching Artist visits and creates a video of a speech performance. Application window for the 2020-21 school year is open. This project continues year round.

Learn More

Oratory Resources

Strengthen student speaking skills and show them why speech matters. Our teachers have created a range of tools and lessons to introduce your students to oratory.

National Oratory Program Gallery

10 Photos & 3 Videos
A National Oratory Fellows Student Delegate practicing his interpretation of a historic speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Photo by Thembi Duncan National Oratory Fellow Krista McKim delivering an original speech at the 2014 May Retreat. Photo by: Gary Erskine A 2017 National Oratory Fellows Student Delegate practices his speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. National Oratory Fellow Darrin Comstock delivering an original speech at the 2015 May Retreat. Photo by: Gary Erskine Director of Education Sarah Jencks leads a workshop on oratory and speech analysis for National Oratory Fellows. A National Oratory Fellow Student Delegate performs an original speech at the May Retreat. A 2017 National Oratory Fellows Student Delegate practices her speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. National Oratory Fellows at the September Pretreat 2014. Photo by Thembi Duncan

Past Fellows

Fellow Spotlight

Fellow Spotlight

Lauren Baxter

Middle-school English Language Arts teacher in a rural school district in south central Pennsylvania.
Joe Moneymaker

Fifth-grade Social Studies and Science teacher in rural Kentucky.
Amber Obert

Middle school social studies teacher in a small but rapidly growing town in Idaho.

Lauren Baxter

Joe Moneymaker

Amber Obert

HELP EMPOWER TEACHERS

Support our National Oratory Fellows with a donation today.

GIVE
“[The program provides] extended, in-depth learning, hands-on resources and support for classroom change, and a national professional learning community.”
Catherine Nelson, Ph.D., Independent Scholar
National Oratory Fellows and Students from 2013 in front of the Lincoln Memorial.