Krista Hensley, MA
Peace Literacy Curriculum Developer
Krista Hensley received her B.A. in English and Secondary Education, and her M.A. in English both from the University of Indianapolis. She has been an English teacher in the public school sector for 30 years, as well as an adjunct professor at the University of Indianapolis. Throughout her career she has taught students from all academic levels and is currently teaching all dual credit courses at Center Grove High School, a public school in Greenwood, Indiana.
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Regardless of the academic skill level of the students or the specific class she teaches, the one thematic unit that consistently engages their curiosity is the unit on the Vietnam War and veterans. Part of her focus is to bring awareness to serious veteran issues such as PTSD, moral injury, suicide, homelessness, and the many other issues facing veterans. In addition to having students learn to empathize with the veterans of the Vietnam war, she has over the years broadened that scope, teaching students to have more empathy for all of humanity and to actively work for peace. Making use of Chappell’s work has proven invaluable in this regard. She particularly appreciates and takes up Chappell’s challenge for educators: “What if the education system had put as much effort toward cultivating my muscle of empathy as it did toward cultivating my muscle of language? What if I had learned as much about rage, conscience, and conflict resolution as I had about grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure?” (Soldiers of Peace, 74).
Hensley has contributed a number of assignments, available on our compendium page, as well as a report from the field. Additionally she has developed an extensive study guide for Soldiers of Peace. Visit her website.
help sustain our work
The Peace Literacy Institute designs curricular materials that anyone can download and use for free to support Peace Literacy in their schools and communities. We also provide education rates for our workshops so teachers can make the most effective use of the curriculum.
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