Dena Vaillancourt

2025 Yale and Slavery Teachers Institute Cohort Member

I teach at Conte West Hills Magnet School in New Haven, Connecticut. Our magnet theme is on exploration and innovation, which greatly fits into my role as an 8th grade social studies teacher. I have taught 8th grade social studies for eleven years, all at my current school. My content focuses on teaching Indigenous Peoples through Reconstruction. 
I love my content and have been able to find relevant and engaging resources over my career, but there are still gaps that I would like to address to make my teaching better for my students. In this institute, I am most interested in adding local connections, especially from the perspectives of Indigenous and Black People, to my teaching of Colonial America, the American Revolution and the forming of the United States. Hearing those points of view to counter the other voices they hear I am hoping will help students have a fuller picture of the history we are learning about and make them more excited about engaging in history, especially in their history, New Haven history.