Folklife Center News Fall 2002 • Volume Xxiv, Number 4
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FOLKLIFE CENTER NEWS FALL 2002 • VOLUME XXIV, NUMBER 4 American Folklife Center • The Library of Congress BOARD OF TRUSTEES ONLINE INFORMATION RESOURCES Congressional Appointees The American Folklife Center’s Kay Kaufman Shelemay, Chair, Web site provides full texts of Massachusetts many publications, information Mickey Hart, California about AFC projects, multimedia Dennis Holub, South Dakota presentations of selected collec William L. Kinney Jr., South Carolina tions, links to Web resources on Judith McCulloh, Illinois ethnography, and announcements Marlene Myerson, New Mexico of upcoming events. The address Presidential Appointees for the home page is http://www. The American Folklife Center loc.gov/folklife/ Fran Mainella An index of the was created in 1976 by the U.S. site contents is available at http:// Congress to “preserve and present Director, National Park Service www.loc.gov/folklife/afcindex.html American folklife” through pro Sonya E. Medina grams of research, documentation, Deputy Director of Projects The Web site for The Veter ans History Project archival preservation, reference ser Office of the First Lady provides an overview of the project, an online vice, live performance, exhibition, The White House “kit” for participants recording oral publication, and training. The Neal A. McCaleb Center incorporates the Archive of histories of veterans, and a brief Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Folk Culture, which was established pre-sentation of some examples of in the Music Division of the Library Department of the Interior video- and audio-recordings of vet of Congress in 1928 and is now one Librarian Appointees erans’ stories. The address is of the largest collections of ethno Jane Beck, Vice-chair, Vermont http://www. loc.gov/folklife/vets graphic material from the United Norma Cantú, Texas The Folkline Information Ser States and around the world. Tom Rankin, North Carolina vice is now a cooperative an William H. Wiggins Jr., Indiana nouncement program of the Ex Officio Members American Folklore Society and the James H. Billington, Librarian of American Folklife Center. It is Congress available only on the American www. STAFF Lawrence M. Small, Secretary of the Folklore Society’s server: afsnet.org. The service provides Smithsonian Institution timely information on the field of Administration Eileen B. Mason, Acting Chairman, folklore and folklife, including Peggy A. Bulger, Director National Endowment for the Arts training and professional oppor Doris Craig, Administrative Assistant Bruce Cole, Chairman, National tunities, and news items of nation John Lewis, Assistant to the Director Endowment for the Humanities al interest. Acquisitions Jack Santino, President, David A. Taylor, Coordinator American Folklore Society Processing and Cataloging Ellen Koskoff, President, Rosemary Graham, Processing Technician Society for Ethnomusicology EDITOR’S NOTES Todd Harvey, Processing Technician Peggy A. Bulger, Director, Catherine Hiebert Kerst, Archivist American Folklife Center Judy Ng, Processing Technician Celebrations Marcia Segal, Processing Technician Nora Yeh, Archivist, Coordinator David Taylor ’s cover photo Programs FOLKLIFE CENTER NEWS graph of Mingo Saldivar cap Michael Taft, Folklife Specialist James Hardin, Editor tures the spirit of this year ’s David A. Taylor, Folklife Specialist David A. Taylor, Editorial Advisor concerts and other programs at Publications the Library of Congress. Perfor James Hardin, Editor Sheryle Shears, Designer Public Events Peggy Pixley, Production mances of traditional music on Theadocia Austen, Coordinator the Library’s Neptune Plaza Andrew Wallace, Coordinator (sponsored by the American Reference Folklife Center News publishes ar Folklife Center ’s series “Home Jennifer A. Cutting, Folklife Specialist ticles on the programs and activ grown 2002: The Music of Amer Judith A. Gray, Folklife Specialist, ities of the American Folklife Cen ica” and the Library of Con- Coordinator ter, as well as other articles on gress’s series “I Hear America Stephanie A. Hall, Automation Specialist traditional expressive culture. It is available free of charge from the Singing”) have kept audiences Ann Hoog, Folklife Specialist tapping their feet, dancing, and Veterans History Project Library of Congress, American Ellen McCulloch-Lovell, Director Folklife Center, 101 Independence singing along from April to Peter T. Bartis, Project Manager Avenue, S.E., Washington, D.C. (Continued on page 19) Sarah Rouse, Program Officer 20540–4610. Folklife Center News Virginia Sorkin, Program Officer does not publish announcements Timothy Roberts from other institutions or reviews Cover: 2002 National Endowment Administrative Officer of books from publishers other for the Ar ts Heritage Fellow Mingo Administrative Office than the Library of Congress. Saldivar on the Library’s Neptune Fax: 202 707–2076 Readers who would like to com Plaza, with Max Bacca (right), in a Reference Service ment on Center activities or concer t of Tex-Mex conjunto music, Tel: 202 707–5510 newsletter articles may address September 19, 2002. Photo by E-mail: [email protected] their remarks to the editor. David A. Taylor 2 Folklife Center News The Power of the Real: The Montana Heritage Project After Seven Years Montana Governor Judy Mar tz addresses the Montana Heritage Project Student Conference, April 9, 2002, where young researchers presented their gifts of scholarship to the state to be preserved in the Montana Historical Society archives for future researchers. Students take their schoolwork seriously because grown-ups take it seriously. At the head table, from the left: Mark Sherouse (director, Montana Committee for the Humanities); Alexandra Swaney (folk ar ts specialist, Montana Ar ts Council); Brian Cockhill (consultant, Liz Claiborne and Ar t Or tenberg Foundation); Governor Mar tz; Ar t Or tenberg, Montana Heritage Project founder ; and Linda McCulloch (superintendent of public instruction, State of Montana). Text and Photos by tion Association’s annual con- their hometown the subject of Michael Umphrey ference in Portland, Oregon, Octo- research, tracing across genera ber 16, 2002. For more informa- tions the rise of one the largest The Montana Heritage Project was tion on the Montana Heritage sheep operations in the nation. established in 1995 through a part- Project, visit their Web site at: Drawing on interviews, re nership involving the Library of http://www.edheritage.org. search in bank and museum Congress and a consortium of Mon- archives, and documentation of tana organizations: the Office of “The Montana Heritage Proj- ranching culture today, they Public Instruction, the University ect is not just a class—it’s an published their work in a book of Montana, Montana State Uni- adventure!” said Kelsey Miller, that adds significant detail to versity, the Montana Historical high school senior from Harlow- the history of Montana and of Society, the Montana State Li- ton, Montana. She was one of a their community. Through a brary, the Montana Center for the hundred high school students multimedia presentation, they Book, the Montana Arts Council, gathered at the state capitol in shared the story of their research and the Montana Committee for the Helena to present their gifts of quest with their community at Humanities. It is funded by the scholarship to Montana gover- a special Heritage Evening Liz Claiborne and Arthur Orten- nor Judy Martz. She and her fel- attended by more than a hun- berg Foundation. This article was low seniors in teacher Nancy dred people. adapted from a keynote speech Widdicombe’s English class had These students take their given at the National Rural Educa- made the Bair family ranch in schoolwork seriously in part Fall 2002 3 Student Christian Essenbach, in teacher Rose Goyen’s English classes at Libby High School, takes notes at the historic Kootenai River, as par t of an “essay of place” research and writing project. Many classes study the natural environment as par t of the community. a secondary- important work that no one ed u cation could do alone. The important project that work we share is that of gather focuses on ing, documenting, preserving, local com and presenting the cultural and munities. In natural heritage of local places. the Montana We will never have enough pro model, the fessional scholars to do this community is work, and if local people don’t both a subject do it, it won’t get done. This real of research ization is easy to communicate and a net to young people, so they know work of re we aren’t being patronizing sources em when we tell them they have real ployed to and important work to do. accomplish At each stage in the process, that research. adult community members are Students are invited to become mentors, co- guided through researchers, and guides, so stu a cycle of dents are engaged in a compre inquiry, sum hensive learning model while marized in the community members are invited ALERT pro to help document and research because adults take it seriously. cess I developed during my their own lives and to tell their Though most schoolwork is graduate research into compre stories in their own ways. thrown away as soon as it is hensive learning models: Some years ago, Education graded, the work of Kelsey and Secretary Richard Riley said that her fellow students will be pre Ask important questions; the nation needed “high educa served at the Montana State His Listen to the historical record as tional standards and effective torical Society archives as a it exists in libraries and archives; strategies for reaching them.” resource for future researchers. Explore beyond the library by Most states have now developed In her excitement about conducting interviews, visiting content and performance stan- community heritage research, sites and events, and creating a dards—lists of things students Kelsey seemed to be reading detailed history of the present; should know and be able to do— from the same page as the proj- Reflect on what has been and debate has come to focus on ect’s founder, Art Ortenberg, learned and how it fits with or how student learning should be who, at the project’s September changes existing knowledge; tested.