South Fayette High School teacher chosen for 2024 Peace Teachers Program
A South Fayette High School teacher is one of 26 educators in the country to be accepted to the 2024 Peace Teachers Program of the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP).
Dr. Felix Yerace, in his 20th year with the district, was the lone Pennsylvanian selected to join this year’s cohort of Peace Teachers.
“This is a very prestigious organization, and knowing that I’m the only educator from Pennsylvania, it’s an honor,” he said. “Anytime I do something, it makes me a better educator and it’s something that I can apply with my students and my colleagues as well.”
USIP was established by Congress in 1984 as an independent institution devoted to the nonviolent prevention and mitigation of deadly conflict abroad.
“The idea for the USIP actually came from George Washington,” Yerace said. “When George Washington was president he felt there needed to be an institute of war and an institute of peace. The institute of war was West Point. The institute of peace actually took another couple of hundred years and was signed into law by President (Ronald) Reagan.”
The Peace Teachers Program is a virtual professional development opportunity for middle and high school teachers committed to educating youth on international peace. The USIP believes educators can be pivotal in bringing themes of good conflict and peace into their classrooms, schools and communities to help the youth obtain the skills, knowledge and perspectives to create a more peaceful world and shape ways to manage violent conflict.
The 2024 program runs through January, during which time Yerace will learn more about the American approach to peace and integrate that theme into the subjects he teaches.
“We get some professional development and they ask us to do some programs in our school and our community during the year that we are working with them,” Yerace said.
Monthly virtual meetings are held, including a recent gathering that featured a representative of the United Nations discussing cybersecurity.
“I really wasn’t worried about cybersecurity before that meeting,” Yerace said. “Now I’m terrified because of all of the threats that are out there.”
Yerace said he’ll be able to implement what he learns into four classes he teaches: AP government, U.S. history, positive psychology and leadership.
“USIP has some really great teacher tools,” Yerace said. “They have some really great activities and really great lessons.
“When you look at a conflict like the Ukraine or learn about cyber warfare, it can be so overwhelming, so heavy and so depressing,” he continued. “I think for some students, they almost become numb and don’t know how to respond. What I try to instill in my students is to think globally and act locally. Maybe you can’t bring peace to the Middle East, but what can you do here in the South Fayette community that can have an impact and can make a difference. I think this gives students a beginning point. I think it gives them the sense that they can have an impact, they can make a difference.”
Another responsibility for Yerace includes organizing activities to recognize the recent United Nations International Day of Peace.
He said the opportunity will serve him, his fellow teachers and his students for years to come.
“The opportunity to incorporate some of their material into my lesson plans to share with my colleagues, some things that I was not aware of, is something that will remain with us well after I’m done with the program,” Yerace said.