On March 1-2, the Historical Museum at St. Gertrude will host the Community Scholars Program, a project of the Idaho Commission on the Arts and led by Folk Arts Director Steven Hatcher.
With the idea that nobody knows a community better than its own members, the Community Scholar Program engages populations directly by teaching its members to document themselves. A short workshop is offered to teach both the basics of oral documentation as well as an overview on the fundamentals of folklife studies. Participants learn how to collect, interpret, archive, and present their subjects.
Following the workshop, the scholars are let loose to interview, photograph, uncover, and discover the people, places, and things they decide form the foundation of their community’s identity. After a determined time the group will reform, compare documentation, and decide as to what capacity the collected material will be presented. Results of the fieldwork, then, are available for local, regional, or statewide exhibits, publications, educational programs, or whatever the community sees fit. For more information and to sign up for the Community Scholars program on March 1-2, call 208-962-2050.