Voices from the Misty Mountains

FAIN: ES-250816-16

Shepherd University (Shepherdstown, WV 25443-5000)
Sylvia Shurbutt (Project Director: February 2016 to April 2022)

Funding details:
Original grant (2016) $147,543.00
Supplement (2017) $4,767.00

To support a three-week institute for twenty-five schoolteachers that would explore Appalachian culture and history through literature, music, and theater.

Shepherd University proposes its third three-week seminar for public school teachers that will delve into the subject of Appalachian literature and culture. A literature of unexpected cultural diversity, the Appalachian literary works and topics that we have selected for the seminar will provide a deeper understanding of the complexity and cultural range of a region that encompasses the twelve states following the ridge of mountains stretching from New York to Georgia. The quality and depth of the Appalachian writers that will be explored in the seminar will allow participants the opportunity to listen to the variety of voices from this region. Participants will also take part in an Appalachian storytelling workshop led by an award-winning storyteller and listen to lectures about playwriting and dramatic storytelling. They will explore Appalachian music and tour the Appalachian heartland.