The Humanities Center at Great Basin College (HC@gbc) seeks to collect, curate, and cultivate the humanities for rural Nevada. At the heart of the HC@gbc are the core skills and habits of mind which the humanities encourage and promote: critical and creative thinking, communication, technological understanding, and personal and cultural awareness. The HC@gbc has been made possible with significant support of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
The Humanities Teaching Toolkit is an interdisciplinary space for GBC faculty to explore the use of the humanities content in their classrooms and to swap best practices or just plain good ideas that need further development.
Presented here is a collection of faculty-submitted items that GBC Faculty have found the most usable and which present the range of materials found within the Toolkit. The list to the right presents some broad categories of items.Humanities-based education can provide students with a broad range of skills which are increasingly vital in the 21st-century world. The HC@gbc has compiled a Humanities Core Skills / Habits of Mind list showing these skills.
The entire Toolkit is fully searchable using the search box above and to the right. Need a refresher on searching the HC@gbc Collections? This video gives a basic overview.
Have Ideas You Would Like to Submit to the Toolkit?
The HC@gbc is always looking for new ideas, assignments, or student aids for the Humanities Toolkit. Any suggestions should be sent to: hc@gbcnv.edu
Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this Humanities Toolkit do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
The Virtual Humanities Center at Great Basin College is proud to present this growing collection of materials representing northeastern Nevada's rich Basque heritage. Originally designed in conjunction with the 2016 Smithsonian Folklife Festival "Innovation by Culture" tribute to Basque-Americans and the Elko National Basque Festival, the Elkokoak exhibit will be a permanent showcase of our local Basque communities.
"Basques and Buckaroos": 34th National Cowboy Poetry Gathering to Honor Basque Culture in the West
The 34th National Cowboy Poetry Gathering will highlight special guests and programming honoring the contemporary heritage of Basques and Buckaroos. Often one in the same, many Basques came to the American West to work on sheep and cattle ranches as herders and buckaroos. Today, many Basque families successfully own and operate their own ranches and carry rich stories of immigration and adaptation. Among Basque communities overseas and in the American West, traditions of music, improvised poetry, literature, dance, foodways and more are flourishing.
The "Elkokoak: The Basques of Elko" Exhibit is a joint project of
This exhibit has been made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the human endeavor
Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this exhibit do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
The Great Basin Indian Archives @ VHC is a collaborative digital exhibition of Western Shoshone oral histories, language and cultural resources to help revitalize the Western Shoshoni language and preserve the living culture.
Defining Native Americans: The Blood Quantum Issue
GBC Talks: “Defining Native Americans: The Blood Quantum Issue” discusses what and how “Blood Quantum” is defined, which is a very popular yet highly controversial topic amongst Native Americans. The three panelists each discuss significant factors that impact how blood quantums have transformed over time and now influence membership policies for tribes.
Panelists include Dr. Scott A. Gavorsky (History Professor, Great Basin College), Jens Camp (Research Associate, Great Basin Institute and California Trail Interpretative Center), and James Hedrick (Cultural Manager, Newe Ghani Cultural Center).
KNPR's "State of Nevada" Show Discusses SCLI
The Great Basin Indian Archives (GBIA) director Norm Cavanaugh recently discussed how the Shoshone Community Language Initiative (SCLI) is helping revitalize the Western Shoshoni language on KNPR's "State of Nevada" radio program. Joining Norm was the VHC's Scott Gavorsky to discuss the GBIA Elder Oral History Project.
In addition to students from Western Shoshone communities of Nevada and Idaho, SCLI 2017 welcomed students from New Jersey, Oregon, and California.
Semahte Wahatte man To'ainkanna (Twelve)
If you missed Semahte Wahatte man To'ainkanna (Twelve), a traditional tale of the seasons and months as performed by the 2014 SYLAP students, we are proud to present it here:
Video courtesy of the the University of Utah Shoshoni Language Project.
Event, Live Streaming, and Digital Archiving Made Possible by the Generous Support of
Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities, Barrick Gold North America, or Great Basin College.
Every month of the academic year, the Humanities Center hosts a book club, featuring a book either selected from Nevada Humanities' Nevada Reads list, or by a GBC community member, or connecting to a theme. In 2025/2026, our theme is authors of the American West.
The Humanities Center at Great Basin College Presents Feature Film Friday : film reviews from GBC Faculty & members of the GBC Film Festival Committee.
Each Friday starting in February 2021, the Humanities Center will post a movie review on the HC@gbc social media pages and web page.
Contributors: Sam Lackey, GBC English Faculty
, Josh Webster, GBC English Faculty, Russ Minter, Chair of GBC Film Festival
Our next book club meeting is December 12, 2025, from 1-2 p.m. We'll be discussing More Than Sheepherders: The American Basques of Elko County, Nevada by Joxe K. Mallea-Olaetxe.
To join in person, meet in McMullen 102 on the Elko Campus.
To join us virtually, log on to the following Zoom link:
The Great Basin Indian Archives @ VHC is a collaborative digital exhibition of Western Shoshone oral histories, language and cultural resources to help revitalize the Western Shoshoni language and preserve the living culture.
Defining Native Americans: The Blood Quantum Issue
GBC Talks: “Defining Native Americans: The Blood Quantum Issue” discusses what and how “Blood Quantum” is defined, which is a very popular yet highly controversial topic amongst Native Americans. The three panelists each discuss significant factors that impact how blood quantums have transformed over time and now influence membership policies for tribes.
Panelists include Dr. Scott A. Gavorsky (History Professor, Great Basin College), Jens Camp (Research Associate, Great Basin Institute and California Trail Interpretative Center), and James Hedrick (Cultural Manager, Newe Ghani Cultural Center).
KNPR's "State of Nevada" Show Discusses SCLI
The Great Basin Indian Archives (GBIA) director Norm Cavanaugh recently discussed how the Shoshone Community Language Initiative (SCLI) is helping revitalize the Western Shoshoni language on KNPR's "State of Nevada" radio program. Joining Norm was the VHC's Scott Gavorsky to discuss the GBIA Elder Oral History Project.
In addition to students from Western Shoshone communities of Nevada and Idaho, SCLI 2017 welcomed students from New Jersey, Oregon, and California.
Semahte Wahatte man To'ainkanna (Twelve)
If you missed Semahte Wahatte man To'ainkanna (Twelve), a traditional tale of the seasons and months as performed by the 2014 SYLAP students, we are proud to present it here:
Video courtesy of the the University of Utah Shoshoni Language Project.
Event, Live Streaming, and Digital Archiving Made Possible by the Generous Support of
Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities, Barrick Gold North America, or Great Basin College.
The Virtual Humanities Center at Great Basin College is proud to present this growing collection of materials representing northeastern Nevada's rich Basque heritage. Originally designed in conjunction with the 2016 Smithsonian Folklife Festival "Innovation by Culture" tribute to Basque-Americans and the Elko National Basque Festival, the Elkokoak exhibit will be a permanent showcase of our local Basque communities.
"Basques and Buckaroos": 34th National Cowboy Poetry Gathering to Honor Basque Culture in the West
The 34th National Cowboy Poetry Gathering will highlight special guests and programming honoring the contemporary heritage of Basques and Buckaroos. Often one in the same, many Basques came to the American West to work on sheep and cattle ranches as herders and buckaroos. Today, many Basque families successfully own and operate their own ranches and carry rich stories of immigration and adaptation. Among Basque communities overseas and in the American West, traditions of music, improvised poetry, literature, dance, foodways and more are flourishing.
The "Elkokoak: The Basques of Elko" Exhibit is a joint project of
This exhibit has been made possible in part by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the human endeavor
Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this exhibit do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.