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Meet Our Team

Mason’s Fun Fact! Talk about team efforts! The first intercollegiate sporting event in America was held on Lake Winnipesaukee in 1852 when a Harvard crew beat a Yale crew in a two-mile boat race. This annual race became known as the Yale-Harvard Regatta.

The New Hampshire Historical Society is a collaborative environment where people with knowledge of the Granite State’s past, expertise in museum and library skills, and passion for all things New Hampshire come together to save, preserve, and share the state’s history. Many people at the Society contributed their talents to creating “Moose on the Loose”; those listed below were the most directly involved in designing and writing the "Moose on the Loose." 

Elizabeth Dubrulle 

Director of Education and Public Programs 

Elizabeth holds a master’s degree in early American history from the University of California, Santa Barbara. As a student, she participated in a residency program at Colonial Williamsburg where she learned about how museums bring history alive to visitors. With a strong background in editing and electronic publishing, she has worked for the national project on the Writings of Henry D. Thoreau, the historical reference publisher ABC-CLIO, and the Colonial Society of Massachusetts. Elizabeth spent nearly a decade teaching in the Humanities program at Saint Anselm College. She has also been very active in local historical activities, serving as chairperson for the Goffstown Historic District Commission, a board member of the Goffstown Historical Society, and co-chair of Goffstown’s 250th anniversary celebration. As director of education and public programs, Elizabeth oversees the Society’s efforts to share New Hampshire history through lectures, workshops, tours, publications, mobile apps, digital projects, story times, and student programs. She is the director of the Democracy Project and works with organizations and school districts around the state to support social studies education in New Hampshire schools.

 

Jennifer Walton 

Assistant Director of Education and Public Programs 

Jenn holds a PhD in American history from The Ohio State University and has teaching experience at institutions such as Saint Anselm College and Granite State College. She is the former director of the History Teaching Institute at Ohio State, where she designed and implemented professional development programs for K-12 social studies teachers in partnership with the Ohio History Center and Columbus Public Schools. Jenn is a board member of the Concord Trust for the Enhancement of Public Education. As the assistant director of education and public programs at the New Hampshire Historical Society, she develops in-house and outreach education programs for students, designs family programming, and leads school groups and guided tours. 

 

Rebecca Federspiel 

Curriculum Coordinator 

Rebecca grew up in New Hampshire enjoying the mountains, beaches, and lakes. After earning her BA in history at Wellesley College, she participated in Teach for America before completing her master’s in education at Simmons College. For the next 15 years, she taught history in public and private schools while living in Massachusetts and New York. A few years ago, she returned to live in New Hampshire with her family—a much desired move—and wrote curriculum as a contractor while working on a second master’s degree in instructional design. Rebecca joined the New Hampshire Historical Society in 2018 as the curriculum coordinator for the Democracy Project. This position combines her three loves—teaching, New Hampshire, and history—and has been a perfect fit for her. She is proud to be part of the team bringing New Hampshire history to educators and students all over the state. 

 

Kate Fox Ransmeier 

Curriculum Developer 

Kate joined the education department of the New Hampshire Historical Society in 2017. She received her BA in English from the University of Pennsylvania and her master’s degree in education in childhood and museum education from Bank Street College of Education. With over a decade of experience as an educator, Kate has been a classroom teacher in both public and independent elementary schools, where she developed and implemented inquiry-driven curriculum that integrated multiple subject areas while providing differentiation to meet the needs and interests of her students. Her work in museums, including the Brooklyn Historical Society and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, has focused on exhibition development research, curriculum development, and teaching school programs. In both settings, Kate’s work as an educator is characterized by the belief that young children invest in learning about the past when they see themselves as part of the story and when they are given opportunities to question and add to that story. 

 

Kirsten Hildonen 

Digital Productions Coordinator 

Kirsten received her bachelor's degree in history from the University of New Hampshire at Manchester and a master's degree in history from The Ohio State University, where she is just wrapping up her PhD in history. She has experience educating all ages, from kindergarteners to senior citizens, and everything in between. Kirsten loves using technology to bring history to as many people as possible. She has lived in New Hampshire since age 11 and considers it her home. After numerous adventures living around the country and overseas, she returned to New Hampshire permanently because it's simply the best place to live. When she’s not working, there’s a good chance you can find her in her kayak somewhere on one of New Hampshire’s many lakes and rivers! 

 

Katie Corbett 

Professional Development Coordinator 

Katie is a 2016 graduate of Saint Anselm College, with a BA in history. After graduating college, Katie worked for City Year Boston as a teaching assistant in a 4th-grade classroom with ESL and SEI students. She used both English and Spanish to assist these students in math, ELA, social studies, engineering, and writing. In the winter of 2018, Katie completed a master’s degree in history and museum studies at the University of New Hampshire. While working towards her various degrees, she held a number of internships in museums and historical locations throughout New England, including Appledore Island (Isles of Shoals), Strawbery Banke Museum, the historical societies of Andover, Massachusetts, and Beverly, Massachusetts, and the Harvard Art Museums. She additionally worked as a tour guide at the Hamilton House, a Historic New England property in South Berwick, Maine, before coming to the New Hampshire Historical Society as a museum educator and the professional development coordinator for the Democracy Project. 

 

Contributing Curriculum Developers

 

Barb Defrancisco is a Nationally Board Certified elementary educator with 34 years in the Merrimack school district.
 
Julie Lynn Ford holds a master’s degree in public policy and public administration and works as an independent contractor conducting research, writing and producing publications, and providing administrative support for nonprofit organizations.
 
Amy Goudreau has taught 4th grade in Goffstown for the past 7 years and holds a master’s degree in education.
 
Megan Neurock has been an elementary educator for 15 years and currently teaches 3rd grade at Cutler School in Swanzey. 
 
Debbe Walter holds a master's of education in curriculum and instruction and has 30 years’ experience teaching 3rd and 4th grade, mainly for Merrimack School District.