The Most Southern Place on Earth: Music, History, and Culture of the Mississippi Delta

FAIN: BH-272368-20

Delta State University (Cleveland, MS 38733-0001)
Rolando Herts (Project Director: February 2020 to present)
Lee Aylward (Co Project Director: August 2020 to present)

Two one-week workshops for 72 school teachers about history, music, food, and racial diversity in the Mississippi Delta.

“The Most Southern Place on Earth” is a seven-day workshop that will bring together K-12 teachers from around the country to learn about the important role that the Mississippi Delta has played in American History. Workshop participants will learn about the interconnectedness of culture, place, and history in the Delta, including the racial and ethnic diversity that influenced, and was influenced by, music, food, and labor. Using scholarship, films, oral history, and museum visits, “Most Southern Place” offers participants a rich and immersive experience that highlights interdisciplinary teaching and learning.

Media Coverage

Delta Center Produces 11th Year of Most Southern Place on Earth Workshops (Media Coverage)
Author(s): Nathan Duff
Publication: Delta State University
Date: 8/8/2023
Abstract: This article summarizes 2023 NEH Most Southern participants' experiences during the June and July workshops. Delta State University distributed this article to various media outlets throughout the MS Delta region.
URL: https://www.deltastate.edu/news-and-events/2023/08/delta-center-produces-11th-year-of-most-southern-place-on-earth-workshops/

Associated Products

Graduate course syllabus for RRS 592: Special Topics in Rural and Regional Studies: Cultural Heritage of the Mississippi Delta (Course or Curricular Material)
Title: Graduate course syllabus for RRS 592: Special Topics in Rural and Regional Studies: Cultural Heritage of the Mississippi Delta
Author: Rolando Herts, Ph.D.
Abstract: A new graduate-level course syllabus was created for the NEH Most Southern workshop to satisfy Delta State University's accreditation requirement, thus allowing workshop participants to register for and receive 6 graduate credits from the university. Heretofore, Delta State did not require a course syllabus for NEH Most Southern to be recognized as a graduate credit-bearing workshop. Details on the course credit and registration process were made available to summer 2023 workshop participants at https://deltacenterdsu.com/most-southern-place-info/2015/4/2/enrolling-for-dsu-graduate-credit
Year: 2023
Primary URL: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/6gvwoicr4tkk79o4hz90h/FINAL-RRS-592-NEH-Most-Southern-DSU-Syllabus-1.pdf?rlkey=lksljt13zpt2g53venr5ekaq1&dl=0
Primary URL Description: A copy of the course syllabus can be downloaded via this link.
Audience: Graduate

NEH Most Southern Final Projects/Educational Resources; Photos, Portfolios, and Videos (Course or Curricular Material)
Title: NEH Most Southern Final Projects/Educational Resources; Photos, Portfolios, and Videos
Author: 2023 Robertson Scholar interns (E. Chen, J. Gupta, M. Jones); NEH Most Southern participants
Abstract: As part of their engagement with the workshop, NEH Most Southern participants submitted final projects/educational resources based on what they experienced. These projects/resources are free for public use, in particular other K-12 educators. The portfolio created by The Delta Center's 2023 Robertson Scholar interns documents aspects of the workshop with the intent of "explor[ing] various themes from the culture and history of the Mississippi Delta and its relevance to the world."
Year: 2023
Primary URL: https://deltacenterdsu.com/mostsouthern2023
Primary URL Description: The webpage provides public access to the portfolio created by the Robertson Scholar interns and to final projects/educational resources created by NEH Most Southern workshop participants
Secondary URL: https://deltacenterdsu.com/lesson-plans-1
Secondary URL Description: NEH Most Southern workshop participants who registered for course credit submitted educational resources (e.g., lesson plan, artwork, reflective essay) inspired by their immersive experiences during the workshop. Educational resources created by 2023 participants were uploaded to the NEH Most Southern website for public use. As an example, the educational resource "Blues appreciation Versus Blues appropriation" by Jocelyn Aguilera is uploaded to the Supplementary Materials section.
Audience: General Public

Summer 2024 - RRS 592 graduate course syllabus: MS Delta Cultural Heritage Ambassadors Program (Course or Curricular Material)
Title: Summer 2024 - RRS 592 graduate course syllabus: MS Delta Cultural Heritage Ambassadors Program
Author: Rolando Herts
Author: Wayne Dowdy
Author: Jenna Welch
Abstract: Inspired by the NEH Most Southern Place on Earth workshop, the MS Delta Cultural Heritage Ambassadors Program Pilot is an 8-month interpretation education program made possible through support from the Walton Family Foundation, MS Delta National Heritage Area, StoryWorks Theater, National Park Service, MS Department of Archives and History, and various regional partners. The program prioritizes community-based cultural heritage tourism and an interpretive project development process that centers and empowers Mississippi Delta storytellers. Cohort members – all of whom are MS Delta residents with StoryWorks Theater – learned about various approaches to cultural heritage interpretation and how to use these approaches in real world contexts. Cohort members apply what they learn towards developing a group interpretive Capstone Project, which will be a series of interpretive tours for residents and visitors during Clarksdale’s Sunflower River Gospel and Blues Festival in August 2024. StoryWorks Theater gave interpretive presentations to 2023 NEH Most Southern workshop participants in Clarksdale.
Year: 2024
Primary URL: https://www.deltastate.edu/news-and-events/2024/03/orientation-for-ms-delta-cultural-heritage-ambassadors-program-pilot-hosted-at-two-mississippi-museums/
Primary URL Description: Media release for the Ambassadors Program orientation session at Two MS Museums, Jackson, MS
Audience: Graduate

Sip and Scholarship Keynote: 8th Annual Conference for the Florida Council for History Education (Public Lecture or Presentation)
Title: Sip and Scholarship Keynote: 8th Annual Conference for the Florida Council for History Education
Abstract: NEH Most Southern alum Jean Faulk invited Dr. Rolando Herts to give a keynote presentation at the NEH Most Southern workshop and other Delta Center programs at the 8th Annual Conference for the Florida Council for History Education in Sarasota, FL. Description from WSLR 96.5 website: "The 8th Annual Conference for the Florida Council for History Education is taking place July 26-27 at venues throughout Sarasota. Its Sip & Scholarship Social on July 26 at Fogartyville features a keynote from historian Dr. Rolando Herts, who will share narratives of historical events through an informal and interactive lecture over a glass of wine or local brew and light bites! Herts is the director of The Delta Center and executive director of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area, a congressionally designated partnership with the National Park Service." https://wslr.org/event/florida-council-for-history-education-sip-scholarship-social/
Author: Rolando Herts
Date: 7/26/2024
Location: Sarasota, FL
Primary URL: https://www.flche.net/8th-annual-flche-conference/

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