Two A-State Heritage Sites to Host Summer Community Scholars Training Program
JONESBORO – This summer, the Community Scholars Training Program will be held at two of the Arkansas State University Heritage Sites.
The Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts Community Scholars Training Program is a free training opportunity for Arkansans interested in finding, documenting and presenting community culture, folklife and traditional arts.
For two weekends this summer, the program will be held in collaboration with the Johnny Cash Boyhood Home and Southern Tenant Farmers Museum.
“Participants will gain skills in documenting and researching culture, archiving and presenting research, and developing projects in collaboration with community stakeholders and organizations,” said Adam Long, director of the A-State Heritage Sites.
“The Community Scholars Program sessions were enjoyable and informative to me in my role at the museum – especially the discussions on exhibit labels, oral interviewing techniques and digital content,” said Mary Clark, an alumna of the program and board member of the Eddie Mae Herron Center in Pocahontas.
“The instructors were extremely knowledgeable, enthusiastic and fun,” she continued.
The program consists of two weekend training sessions held Saturday and Sunday, June 7-8, and July 26-27.
During the program, participants will develop ideas for a project to practice the skills they have learned. Participants are required to commit to the entire training series. Registration is required.
“The June training sessions will be held in Dyess at the Johnny Cash Boyhood Home and Museum, and we will host our second weekend at the Southern Tenant Farmers Museum in Tyronza,” Long added.
“It’s such a pleasure to be able to bring this program to new communities throughout Arkansas,” said Virginia Siegel, director of Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts.
“This upcoming program in Northeast Arkansas marks over a dozen iterations of this training series. We are growing a truly inspiring group of Community Scholars program alumni across the state.”
This training opportunity is free and open to the public.
Visit folklife.uark.edu/scholar/ for more information and to register to attend. Contact Lauren Willette at willette@uark.edu or call 479-575-4664 with questions or help with the registration process.
Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts is a statewide program of the University of Arkansas Libraries dedicated to building cross-cultural understanding by documenting, presenting and sustaining Arkansas’ living traditional arts and cultural heritage. 
The Historic Dyess Colony: Johnny Cash Boyhood home
