WESTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY
Master of Arts in Folk Studies, May 1997
INDIANA UNIVERSITY
TRADITIONAL aRTS iNDIANA
director, June 2004 to present
Supervise and direct all programs, including traditional arts surveys, master/apprenticeship program, State Fair Master’s Awards, State Fair Fiddle Contest, statewide outreach, database development and new initiatives.
Florida State Parks/Florida Folk Festival
Coordinate, plan and direct the oldest continuing state sponsored folk festival in the United States. Research, select and present a diverse slate of traditional and heritage based artists at the event.
FLORIDA STATE PARKS/STEPHEN FOSTER FOLK CULTURE CENTER
Researched and presented educational programs; administered Folklife and Craft Program; coordinated workshops; developed and taught Elderhostel; wrote and administered grants; supervised contract folklorist and folklife survey project. Researched and produced permanent folklife exhibit
FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF STATE/STEPHEN FOSTER STATE FOLK CULTURE CENTER
Developed master interpretive plan, researched and scheduled folklife/craft demonstrations and worked with Elderhostel
HISTORICAL MUSEUM OF SOUTHERN FLORIDA
Documented and researched artists represented in the exhibit Florida Folklife: Traditional Arts in Contemporary Communities. Researched traditional oyster skiffs and tongs, shrimp nets, crab traps, spurs, quilts, and hula drums
KENTUCKY ARTS COUNCIL (AIE)
Conducted a twelve-week residency at Cloverport Independent School System on the Ohio River. Researched and presented folk arts: sacred steel music, play-party songs and games, cast net making, mussel brailing, piñata making, foodways
THE KENTUCKY MUSEUM
Researched, designed and programmed computer exhibits that engage visitors with state and local history
KENTUCKY FOLKLIFE FESTIVAL/KENTUCKY FOLKLIFE PROGRAM
Researched artists, assisted in planning and programming, hosted and conducted talk stages
VANCEBURG BICENTENNIAL CELEBRATION
Researched and presented local folk traditions at community bicentennial festival
PINE MOUNTAIN STATE RESORT PARK/KENTUCKY ARTS COUNCIL
Documented folk traditions, collected oral histories, developed resource guide, and presented programs. Researched traditional white oak basket and creek willow basket makers, chair makers, dough bowl makers, wood carvers, quilters, cooks, storytellers, ballad singers, fiddlers, ginseng hunters and folk medicine
“Faces of Faith” in FLORIDA HUMANITIES COUNCIL FORUM MAGAZINE Vol. XXIII, No. 2, Fall 2000
Contributed a profile on Nancy Morgan, a member of a Primitive Baptist Church
Directed and engineered recording project on this traditional Georgia storyteller
Directed recording project and composed liner notes
FLORIDA FOLKLIFE: TRADITIONAL ARTS IN CONTEMPORARY COMMUNITIES
Profiles on traditional arts: oyster skiffs and tongs, shrimp nets, crab traps, spurs, and hula drums
Developed teacher resource guide on North Florida rural traditions
"MULTICULTURAL EDUCATION: EXPERIENCE CENTERED LEARNING" IN FOLKWINDS
Essay on multicultural education and folklife materials in education
"FOLKLIFE IN THE CLASSROOM" IN FOLKWINDS
Essay on the benefits of using folklife materials in education
Composed, performed, and produced music for documentary soundtrack
Composed, performed, and produced music for travel video
Composed, performed, and produced live recording
Composed, performed, and produced instrumental recording
Researched, photographed and composed text for outdoor exhibit on the traditional arts of the Upper Suwannee (funded by Florida Humanities Council)
Curated and designed exhibit on shape-note singing and singing schools
Designed and programmed this permanent computer-based history exhibit
Designed and programmed this permanent computer-based history exhibit
FLORIDA FOLK FESTIVAL
Florida State Parks, May 2002, 2003, 2004
Planned, coordinated, and supervised all aspects of this large event. Negotiated contracts, administered grants, presented artists, coordinated staff. Event includes a Folklife Area, Seminole Family Camp, 2 workshop areas, dance stage, five music venues and a craft complex.
COST-EFFECTIVE HERITAGE PROGRAMMING
Southeastern State Park Programs Seminar, Cordele, GA, December 2003
Presentation provided strategies for creating high quality programs without state or grant funds
SUWANNEE BANJO CAMP
Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center, October 2003
Coordinated banjo lessons and concerts featuring nationally recognized
RURAL FOLKLIFE DAYS
Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center, October 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003
Researched, planned and coordinated a heritage arts celebration for more than 5,000 school children each year; program included traditional whip makers, quilters, soap makers, basket makers, cane grinding, canning, cooking, flying checkers, horseshoes, barbeque, cast net making, mule training and farming activities. All activities tied to Sunshine State Standards
TRADITIONAL BASKETS IN FLORIDA
Stephen Foster Folk Culture Center, August 2003
Coordinated an NEA funded public program featuring traditional basket makers from throughout the Sunshine State. Program included workshops, demonstrations and a narrative stage featuring pine needle, sweetgrass and white oak and basket makers
ROOTS OF AMERICAN MUSIC
Florida Humanities Council
A special lecture prepared for the FHC Speaker’s Bureau. Presented throughout the state. Presentation explores the diversity of American music through traditional instruments and songs
PRESENTING GOSPEL MUSIC
Performing Arts Exchange, Charlotte, NC, September 2003
Participated in a panel discussion on effective methods of presenting gospel music
FLORIDA FOLKLIFE: Rural Roots and Living Traditions
Florida Center for Teachers /Florida Humanities Council, March 2002
Served as scholar and seminar leader for two weekend Alumni Teacher Programs. Teachers learned about traditional arts in rural North Florida
American Traditions: Professional Development for Performing Artists
Kentucky Arts Council, October 2001, Minnesota Arts Board, March 2002, Performing Arts Exchange (Louisville, KY), September 2002, Mississippi Arts Commission, October 2002
Conducted workshop for traditional artists on improving interpretive and performance skills
INCREASE REVENUE THROUGH PROGRAMMING
Florida State Parks/Annual Park Manager’s Meeting, September 2001
Conducted a workshop on increasing park revenue through creative programming
FLORIDA FOLKLIFE: TRADITIONAL ARTS IN CHANGING COMMUNITIES
Florida Center for Teachers/Florida Humanities Council, July 2001
Served as scholar and seminar leader for a week-long training for teachers
FOLKLIFE OF THE SUWANNEE
Four Rivers, Two States, One Basin: A Research Symposium for the Suwannee Basin, April 2001
Presentation for a regional conference on the traditional ways of life in the Suwannee Basin
FOLKLIFE AND THE ENVIRONMENT
Organized and coordinated the Society’s annual meeting; delivered the meeting’s opening remarks that delved into the relationship between natural and cultural communities
PRESENTING TRADITIONAL ARTIST: TECHNIQUES AND CRITIQUES
Developed and presented workshops that empowered organizations to identify and present traditional arts. Presentation showcased effective models in presenting traditional arts and discussed common difficulties encountered by presenters
"YOU DON'T KILL THE HOG TILL THE WATER GETS HOT": VERBAL ART AND POOL CHECKERS
Presented paper on oral traditions of local African American checker players
FOLKLIFE AND PARKS
Conducted workshop on how to identify and present traditional arts in parks
EXPLORING FOLKLIFE IN YOUR COMMUNITY
Conducted workshop on identifying and researching community traditions
FOLKLIFE AND ECOTOURISM
Conducted workshops on the importance of folklife to ecotourism
PRESERVING AND CONSERVING: A HERITAGE EDUCATION WORKSHOP
Conducted workshop with other professionals on linking natural and cultural communities
THE TRADITIONS OF OUR DISCIPLINE: EARLY FLORIDA FOLKLORISTS
Presented paper on Sarah Gertrude Knott and the first Florida Folk Festival
RURAL FOLKLIFE DAYS: TEACHER INSERVICE
Presented workshop on integrating rural traditions into lesson plans
OUR TOWN: USING YOUR COMMUNITY AS A FORM OF INTERPRETATION
Conducted workshop on using folklife and community resources in historic site programs
CAN WE TALK?
Conducted workshop on the methods and uses of oral history in park and historic sites
FOLKLORISTS IN THE PARKS
Organized and moderated a panel discussion on presenting local folklife in parks. Conducted folklife presentations featuring area tradition bearers: net maker, fiddler, Hungarian embroidery artist, surfboard maker, whip maker
FROM HEADSTONES TO STONEHEAD: A TOUR OF PRE-CIVIL WAR CEMETERIES
Created and presented a tour of the folk art headstones in Brown County, Indiana
WILL VAWTER: THE LIFE AND ART OF A BROWN COUNTY ARTIST
Created and presented program on the life and work of Hoosier impressionist Will Vawter
BROWN COUNTY: LOCALS, ARTISTS, AND TOURISTS
Brown County Public Library, October 1994; Mooresville Public Library, November 1994; Indian Creek Theater (Corydon, IN), December 1994; T. C. Steele State Historic Site, July 1995
Created and presented program on the Brown County Art Colony
FOLK MUSIC IN THE CLASSROOM
Conducted workshop on incorporating traditional music into a multicultural curriculum
Florida Humanities Council Fellowship
Suwannee Storytellers, 2002-2003
A fellowship to study the storytelling traditions near the Suwannee River
Florida Folklore Society
President, 2001-2003 Term
FLORIDA PARK SERVICE
Division of Recreation and Park’s Public Service Award, 2001
FLORIDA PARK SERVICE,
T. C. STEELE STATE HISTORIC SITE
Volunteer of the Year, 1995
NATIONAL TRADITIONAL COUNTRY MUSIC ASSOCIATION