West Virginia: Our History is America's History

FAIN: BC-50210-04

West Virginia Humanities Council (Charleston, WV 25301-3001)
Mark Payne (Project Director: March 2004 to September 2006)

To support programming addressing Western Virginia's separation from Virginia and the issues that led to statehood, and West Virginia's immediate enforcement of Brown v. Board of Education.

The West Virginia Council will explore two U. S. historical events and examine their impact on our state: 1) Western Virginia’s separation from Virginia and the issues that led to its statehood and 2) The Brown v. Board decision, contested by many southern states, but immediately enforced in West Virginia. Programs include lectures, a WV Statehood exhibit, and RFPs for programs, media projects, publications, and teacher institutes. Targeted audiences include African Americans, local communities affected by desegregation, teachers, university audiences, and underserved rural areas.