After the Civil War, HBCUs pioneered Black education in America.
Students Gain Valuable Experience Assisting the Center
No items found.
Past newsletters and blog posts from the Amistad Research Center have acknowledged the wonderful assistance we receive from student employees, interns, and volunteers. The dedication and help these young people provide the Center is matched by the valuable experience they gain working in a variety of areas at Amistad. We are fortunate to have a number of extra hands this summer, and would like to give them an opportunity to share their experiences.
Aria Johnson is a senior at Warren Easton High School. This is her second summer working at the Amistad Research Center. She writes, “While working at Amistad, I have gained a lot of work experience, as well as earning money for school. Having this job has been a help to me because I have gained great administrative skills and I have also learned a little bit more about the Amistad Case and the history of African Americans.”A freshman at Xavier University of Louisiana, London Kennedy also assisted the Center for a second summer. This year she helped with administrative tasks, compiled information for the Center’s exhibition and fund-raising efforts, and helped staff prepare for Essence Festival. She says “It is always a pleasure to work for the Amistad Research Center.”
Also returning to the Center is Christian Williams, a Junior Finance major at Jackson State University. His time at Amistad has “sharpened my organizing, researching, reading, writing, and even financial literacy skills.” Staff have worked to tie Christian’s duties to his interest in finance. He has assisted with the selection of new books for the library collection and learned out the Center works with rare book dealers and he was able to talk to the Center’s accountant about non-profit fiscal management. He has helped organize the records of the now-defunct Mary Allen College and assisted with the Center’s booth at the Essence Festival. Christian states “my time spent with the Center has benefitted me greatly and I look forward to working as well as giving back in any way to the Amistad.”
Amistad is receiving tremendous assistance in increasing access to its archival collections with help from Raven Hill and Madeline Goebel. Raven is in her second year at the University of Chicago, majoring in Gender and Sexuality Studies. She is working with the collections of black women artists, and has organized the papers of poet Pinkie Gordon Lane and an addition to the papers of sculptor and printmaker Elizabeth Catlett. She is currently processing the papers of artist Ruth Waddy. Madeline Goebel is a senior at Tulane University, where she studies History and French. She is excited to return to the Amistad Research Center as a summer intern in the processing department. This summer, Madeline will be processing the papers of actor, writer, director and producer Harold Sylvester.Floyd Williams, who is enrolled in the Master of Arts in Museum Studies Program at Southern University at New Orleans, has been assisted with the Center’s fine arts collection. He has assisted with the preparation of conservation reports for works in the collection and in the installation of the Center’s exhibition on the Black Arts Movement.Thanks to everyone for their hard work and dedication this summer!
Images from Amistad’s website, newsletters, and blogs cannot be reproduced without permission.
Explore More Articles
Kathe Hambrick is the Founder and former Executive Director of the River Road African American Museum (RRAAM), established in 1994 as Louisiana’s first African American Museum. She is a past President of the national Association of African American Museums (AAAM). She served as the Chief Curator and Director of Interpretation for the West Baton Rouge Museum for four years. Hambrick was born in New Orleans and spent half her life in California where she received an undergraduate degree in English and a minor in African American Studies from California State University Long Beach.
Hambrick is a Public Historian with a passion for collecting, preserving and interpreting history for diverse audiences. Her thirty-one-year career as a museum professional includes expertise in program development, interpretative planning, curation, grant writing, fundraising, and board governance. She led the effort to preserve three slave cemeteries and six historic buildings in Ascension Parish.
She is considered an expert on the history and culture of African Americans in communities along the Mississippi River. Kathe Hambrick’s interviews include local, national, and international media, the BBC Learning Channel, CBS Morning News, National Public Radio, and the New York Times. The consulting firm, 2PRESERVE was established by Hambrick in 2021 to provide cultural resources and guidance to corporations, museums, cultural centers, government agencies, and faith-based organizations.
Throughout her 31-year career, Kathe has curated over one hundred exhibits, including The Rural Roots of Jazz, African Influences on Louisiana Cuisine, Creole Du Monde, and The Square Collection which featured original art by Elizabeth Catlett, Jacob Lawrence, Richmond Barthé, and Tina Allen. Her most recent exhibit is the GU272 of Ascension: The Jesuit and Episcopal Connection to Slavery.
Kathe is the author and co-author of several books:
Kathe Hambrick is the Founder and former Executive Director of the River Road African American Museum (RRAAM), established in 1994 as Louisiana’s first African American Museum. She is a past President of the national Association of African American Museums (AAAM). She served as the Chief Curator and Director of Interpretation for the West Baton Rouge Museum for four years. Hambrick was born in New Orleans and spent half her life in California where she received an undergraduate degree in English and a minor in African American Studies from California State University Long Beach.
Hambrick is a Public Historian with a passion for collecting, preserving and interpreting history for diverse audiences. Her thirty-one-year career as a museum professional includes expertise in program development, interpretative planning, curation, grant writing, fundraising, and board governance. She led the effort to preserve three slave cemeteries and six historic buildings in Ascension Parish.
She is considered an expert on the history and culture of African Americans in communities along the Mississippi River. Kathe Hambrick’s interviews include local, national, and international media, the BBC Learning Channel, CBS Morning News, National Public Radio, and the New York Times. The consulting firm, 2PRESERVE was established by Hambrick in 2021 to provide cultural resources and guidance to corporations, museums, cultural centers, government agencies, and faith-based organizations.
Throughout her 31-year career, Kathe has curated over one hundred exhibits, including The Rural Roots of Jazz, African Influences on Louisiana Cuisine, Creole Du Monde, and The Square Collection which featured original art by Elizabeth Catlett, Jacob Lawrence, Richmond Barthé, and Tina Allen. Her most recent exhibit is the GU272 of Ascension: The Jesuit and Episcopal Connection to Slavery.
Kathe is the author and co-author of several books:
Kathe Hambrick is the Founder and former Executive Director of the River Road African American Museum (RRAAM), established in 1994 as Louisiana’s first African American Museum. She is a past President of the national Association of African American Museums (AAAM). She served as the Chief Curator and Director of Interpretation for the West Baton Rouge Museum for four years. Hambrick was born in New Orleans and spent half her life in California where she received an undergraduate degree in English and a minor in African American Studies from California State University Long Beach.
Hambrick is a Public Historian with a passion for collecting, preserving and interpreting history for diverse audiences. Her thirty-one-year career as a museum professional includes expertise in program development, interpretative planning, curation, grant writing, fundraising, and board governance. She led the effort to preserve three slave cemeteries and six historic buildings in Ascension Parish.
She is considered an expert on the history and culture of African Americans in communities along the Mississippi River. Kathe Hambrick’s interviews include local, national, and international media, the BBC Learning Channel, CBS Morning News, National Public Radio, and the New York Times. The consulting firm, 2PRESERVE was established by Hambrick in 2021 to provide cultural resources and guidance to corporations, museums, cultural centers, government agencies, and faith-based organizations.
Throughout her 31-year career, Kathe has curated over one hundred exhibits, including The Rural Roots of Jazz, African Influences on Louisiana Cuisine, Creole Du Monde, and The Square Collection which featured original art by Elizabeth Catlett, Jacob Lawrence, Richmond Barthé, and Tina Allen. Her most recent exhibit is the GU272 of Ascension: The Jesuit and Episcopal Connection to Slavery.
Kathe is the author and co-author of several books: