Center welcomes Ben Gies as civics graduate assistant
Ben Gies
Ben Gies, of Louisville, Ky., has been named the McConnell Center’s graduate assistant for civic education. Gies will develop civic enrichment programs such as the Center’s Young Leaders Academy for high school students and facilitate professional development conferences for Kentucky social studies teachers.
“Working at the McConnell Center will allow me to receive a double education as the conferences and seminars will clarify my knowledge of the American Constitution and help me to grow as a deeper thinker and better facilitator,” said Gies, who is pursuing a master’s degree in history at the University of Louisville.
In addition to the Center’s assistantship, Gies has also received a Madison Fellowship, an award of $24,000 reserved for one student from each state who desires to teach the U.S. Constitution at the secondary school level. In addition to receiving funding towards his master’s degree, Gies will attend Georgetown University next summer for continuing education and of behind-the-scenes opportunities such as meetings with U.S. Supreme Court Justices.
Gies is a 2014 graduate of Bellarmine University where he received his bachelor’s degree in history and secondary education and completed a thesis on the Kentucky Rock Asphalt Co. and company town culture in western Kentucky during the 20th century. Gies also completed several international studies while at Bellarmine, including studying the French Revolution in France and religious diversity in Kerala, India, and interning with the U.S. Navy in Naples, Italy.