Research Up-To-Date

The Newsletter of the Urban Appalachian Council Research Committee

January-February 2008

Editor:  Roberta M. Campbell

Contributors: Rebecca Bailey, Phillip Obermiller, Kathryn Russ

To subscribe or unsubscribe to this newsletter, send an e-mail to uacnewsletter@zellerwebdesign.com.

Spotlight On...
Dr. Rebecca Bailey, Northern Kentucky University

(Occasionally the newsletter focuses on a particular member or affiliate of the UAC Research Committee. Please let us know of your recent endeavors and successes that you would like to have highlighted.)

Dr. Rebecca Bailey joined the Research Committee in 2006, shortly after she arrived at Northern Kentucky University. Dr. Bailey holds a Ph.D. in History with specialties in Public History and Appalachian History. She is the advisor for NKU’s Public History certificate and is working to develop a more extensive program in Public History there.

One of Dr. Bailey’s recent presentations was for the November 10, 2007, Northern Kentucky Libraries “One Book, One Community”: Appalachian Afternoon. She led a discussion called: “Haints, the Sight, Folk Beliefs, and Appalachian History in The Hangman’s Beautiful Daughter, by Sharyn McCrumb. She also is teaching a graduate seminar on Appalachian History at NKU this spring semester.

Dr. Bailey’s upcoming professional achievements and activities include:

• Becoming the Appalachian Studies Association historian;
• Participating in a panel about oral history at the March, 2008 ASA conference at Marshall University;
• An essay in a collection being published in 2008 by the West Virginia University Press in honor of Ronald L. Lewis;
• And her book titled Matewan Before the Massacre, will be published this year by the WVU press.
• Being a guest teacher at the National Endowment for the Humanities summer institute for college and university teachers in Ferrum, Virginia in 2008.

Dr. Bailey has certainly been busy since landing in the Greater Cincinnati area. We are proud of her accomplishments and grateful for her contributions to the community.

Miami University--Hamilton Launches Appalachian Reflection Series

The Downtown Center in Hamilton, Ohio recently opened its doors to the public. Located in the former Dixon Opera House, MUH programs aimed at Civic Engagement began in late December. Part of this includes several theme-focused series. One of those series, Down Home, Downtown: Appalachian Reflections, is focused on the legacy of Appalachia. On the first Monday of each Month, a guest emcee will lead a program of music, storytelling, songs, jokes, and more. Events begin at 7 pm.

For program information and directions go to http://www.ham.muohio.edu/downtown/downhome.htm

Kathryn Russ Co-authors Article on Appalachian Career Choices

Dr. Mei Tang, Chairman of the University of Cincinnati Counseling Program, and Kathryn Russ recently published an article in The Career Development Quarterly. The title of the article is “Understanding and facilitating career development of people of Appalachian culture: An integrated approach” (The Career Development Quarterly, 56, 34-47).

Dr. Russ is a member of the UAC Research Committee. The article abstract follows:

The literature on career development for people of Appalachian culture is sparse. This article reviews cultural values of Appalachians and proposes an innovative career intervention model to best serve people of this culture. The model integrates the concepts of the social cognitive career development approach (R. W. Lent, S. D. Brown, & G. Hackett, 1994) and ecological counseling principles (R. K. Conyne & E. P. Cook, 2004). As this model demonstrates, providing contextual and cultural accommodation is critical in order to gain the trust and permission to work with people of Appalachian culture.

Ferrum College to Hold NEH Summer Work for College and University Teachers

REGIONAL STUDY AND THE LIBERAL ARTS:
APPALACHIA UP-CLOSE

A National Endowment for the Humanities funded institute
June 8-­ July 4, 2008
Ferrum College, Ferrum, Virginia and Big Creek People in Action, Caretta, West Virginia
Participant stipend: $3,000
INSTITUTE WEBSITE: http://www.ferrum.edu/neh

From a range of disciplines and at both campus and community locations, the
Institute will examine Appalachian issues that link regional study to the
liberal arts. Leaders expect to choose participants from many regions of the
country, not just Appalachia. The twenty-five teachers selected for the NEH
Summer Institute, "Regional Study and the Liberal Arts: Appalachia
Up-Close," will receive stipends of $3,000 each. Principal institute
faculty are Mary Anglin, Rebecca Bailey, Todd Fredericksen, Tina Hanlon,
George Loveland, Gordon McKinney, Susan Mead, Phillip Obermiller, Adriana
Trigiani, Frank X. Walker, Vaughan Webb, Lana Whited, and Daniel Woods. The
director is Peter Crow. Inquiries to Sandy Doss: cdoss@ferrum.edu (540)
365-4321.

Editor’s note: Institute faculty Phillip Obermiller and Rebecca Bailey are members of the UAC Research Committee. As a 2006 participant in the NEH Summer Institute I can attest to the professional and personal value of this workshop. I urge all qualified candidates to apply.

Appalachian Studies Annual Conference Held at Marshall University

The 2008 conference of the Appalachian Studies Association will take place on March 28-30 on the campus of Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia.

This year’s conference theme is: “The Road Ahead: The Next Thirty Years of Appalachian Studies”. The Keynote speaker is Silas House and the association president is Shaunna Scott. To register go to www.appalachianstudies.org.

Obermiller Develops New Bibliography on Appalachian Migration History

A new bibliography has been added to the UAC website by Phil Obermiller. Historical Sources on Appalachian Migration and Urban Appalachians, 1870 - 1999 is now available online at http://uacvoice.org/research.html.

Organized from an historical perspective, the entries in each category are first categorized by type of publication (Books and Articles, Dissertations and Theses, Newspaper Articles, Literature, and Bibliographies), then listed by decade of publication, and finally alphabetically by author.

For the convenience of general researchers, however, the bibliography is posted as a PDF file containing 126 pages of entries which are searchable using the "Find - Next" utility in Adobe Acrobat.

For more current entries, please see A Current Bibliography of Urban Appalachian and Migration Resources, also available on the Urban Appalachian Council website.

Research Notes
(From the Research Committee: Debbie Zorn, Chair)

The next meeting of the Research Committee will be at 10 am at UAC on March 14, 2008.

Additional Links:

Center for the Study of Gender and Ethnicity in Appalachia
http://www.marshall.edu/csega/index.asp

The Appalachian Connection (newspaper)
http://uacvoice.org/AppalachianConnection/apconarchives.html

East Tennessee State University Center for Appalachian Studies and Services
http://www.etsu.edu/cass

The University of Kentucky Appalachian Center
http://www.research.uky.edu/Appalcenter/index.html

Berea College Appalachian Center
http://www.berea.edu/appalachiancenter/

The Center for Appalachian Studies, Appalachian State University
http://www1.appstate.edu/dept/appstudies/

Appalachian Studies Association
http://AppalachianStudies.org/

Social Areas Report of Cincinnati
http://www.socialareasofcincinnati.org/

Appalachian Women’s Alliance
http://www.appalachianwomen.org

Appalachian Studies at Miami University-Hamilton
http://www.ham.muohio.edu/appalachian/index.htm

Oral History of Appalachia Program, Marshall University
http://www.marshall.edu/sociology/Oralhist/ohap.html

Appalachian Regional Commission
http://www.arc.gov/index.jsp

Highlander Research and Education Center
http://www.highlandercenter.org/