Dr. Herts participated in the unveiling of the 190th marker on the Mississippi Blues Trail, "Where the Southern Crosses the Dog," at Moorhead, MS, this morning (10/2/14.) Pictured with Dr. Herts (second from the left) are Robert Terrell, of the B.B. King Museum, Mary Margaret Miller with Mississippi Tourism, and George Holland, Mayor of Moorhead.
Dr. Rolando Herts, the new Director of the Delta Center for Culture and Learning at Delta State University samples some of the many rice dishes prepared for the 24th annual Rice Tasting Luncheon. This was Dr. Herts' first luncheon; I bet he will be back next year! The luncheon celebrates our Delta farmers and rice production in the Delta!
Meet the new Director of the Delta Center, Dr. Rolando Herts. We are excited to have Dr.Herts with us, and we look forward to great collaborations with all of you. Come see us and meet Dr. Herts!!!
Thursday, August 21st, was a red-letter day in the life of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area! We celebrated with partners from throughout the Delta the acceptance of the MDNHA Management Plan, while also saying "goodbye" to our former director, Dr. Luther Brown and "hello" to our new director Dr. Rolando Herts!!! Thanks to everyone for a truly wonderful celebration!!
Sam Houston State University students recently visited the Delta Center for Culture and Learning to learn about the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area.
The Delta State University Delta Center for Culture and Learning recently introduced a geography class from Sam Houston State University to the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area.
The class, led by Dr. John Strait, spent a week in the Delta exploring the blues, civil rights issues and the Great Migration. Lee Aylward of the Delta Center gave the class an overview of the Delta’s cultural heritage.
Strait has been coming to the Delta several times each year for over a decade. He is a regular lecturer in the Delta Center’s annual National Endowment for the Humanities workshops. Additionally, he brings his own classes once or twice each year.
The Delta Center is the manager of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area, a partnership with the National Park Service. Learn more about the Delta Center’s rich history at http://www.blueshighway.org. Visit http://www.neh.gov/ to read about the National Endowment for the Humanities.
The St. Stephens Episcopal School Delta Heritage Class, in front of “A Cast of Blues,” the collection of life-masks of Blues musicians created by sculptor Sharon McConnell, outside the offices of the Delta Center in Ewing Hall. Group leader William Southerland is on the far right, next to Luther Brown of the DSU Delta Center. Photo by Lee Aylward.
The DSU Delta Center for Culture and Learning recently provided an overview of the Delta’s cultural heritage to a class from St. Stephen’s Episcopal School of Bradenton, Florida. The class was organized by William Sutherland, a specialist in Southern literature who participated in one of the Delta Center’s workshops in 2010. He has returned to the Delta with two high school classes since then. The workshops are titled “The Most Southern Place on Earth, History, Music and Culture of the Mississippi Delta.” They are offered to teachers annually, and are funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Several former participants have brought their own classes to the region to introduce them to the Delta’s important cultural heritage. The St. Steven’s class spent a week in the Delta, flying in and out of Memphis.
PHOTO: The combined classes from Mississippi State University and the University of Mississippi at Dockery Farms. Photo by Cade Smith, Student Leadership and Community Engagement Director at Mississippi State University.
The Delta Center for Culture and Learning at Delta State University provided an introduction to the Delta’s cultural heritage for a combined group of students from Mississippi State and the University of Mississippi during their Alternative Spring Break. The students spend a week in the Delta, combining service projects with visits to attractions like Delta State University, the Quapaw Canoe Company, the Delta Blues Museum, McCarty’s Pottery, the Levee Run Farm, Dulaney Seed Company, and Po’ Monkey’s Lounge. The students stay at the North Greenwood Baptist Church and dine in restaurants throughout the Delta. The academic aspect of the course focuses on the Blues and Civil Rights heritage of the Delta. The Mississippi State group was organized by Alternative Spring Break Co-Directors Courtney Allen and Chris Turner. The University of Mississippi class was organized by AmeriCorps VISTA workers Ryan Parsons and Erin Mauffrey, and accompanied by Dr. Albert Nylander, formerly Dean of Graduate and Continuing Studies at Delta State and now Director of the McLean Institute for Partnerships and Community Engagement at Ole Miss.
PHOTO: From left, President of the Cleveland Music Foundation Lucy Janoush and Delta State University President Dr. John M. Hilpert sign the lease agreement for the establishment of GRAMMY® Museum Mississippi to be located on the Delta State University campus in Cleveland.
Delta State University has entered into a lease agreement with the Cleveland Music Foundation to provide the property for the construction of the GRAMMY® Museum Mississippi in Cleveland.
On Friday, February 1, Delta State University President Dr. John M. Hilpert and Lucy Janoush, president of the Cleveland Music Foundation, the non-profit entity set to build the museum, signed a 99-year lease agreement designating a four-acre tract of property located on the south end of the Delta State golf course along Highway 8 as the site for the construction of the museum. Groundbreaking is tentatively set for late February.
As part of the agreement, the Cleveland Music Foundation will provide the funding and resources for the reconstruction of the golf course so that it remains a nine-hole facility.
The signing comes after Governor Phil Bryant’s recent presentation of a $1 million check to the Cleveland Music Foundation as the first installment for the establishment of the first official GRAMMY® museum outside of Los Angeles.
GRAMMY® Museum Mississippi will be a world-class, 20,000 plus square foot facility dedicated to exploring the past, present and future of music and the cultural context from which it emerges. The museum’s permanent exhibition will utilize film, video, interactive kiosks and, of course, music.
The museum will be closely affiliated with the Delta Music Institute (DMI), Delta State’s accredited program of music industry studies. A student exchange program will be developed between GRAMMY® Museum Mississippi and GRAMMY Museum® at L.A. LIVE to offer qualified DMI students opportunities to earn college credit and interact with their counterparts at Los Angeles area colleges and universities.
“This is important not only to the Delta Music Institute, but to the entire university,” said Hilpert. “We anticipate the participation of many faculty and students in the establishment and operation of GRAMMY® Museum Mississippi. This is a very meaningful project to all constituencies of the university, and I want to thank Lucy Janoush and the board of the Cleveland Music Foundation for their hard work toward driving this project to completion.”
GRAMMY® Museum Mississippi will present a unique economic development opportunity for Mississippi. Partnering with one of the world’s most recognized brands will help cement the state’s claim as “The Birthplace of America’s Music.” Mississippi has invested in a number of projects to honor its unique culture and heritage; among them are the Mississippi Blues and Country Music Trail markers, the B.B. King Museum, the Delta Blues Museum and the Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Center.
“This project would not be remotely possible without Delta State University’s participation and support,” said Janoush. “We are so thankful to Dr. Hilpert and DMI Director Tricia Walker and her students for their efforts in helping to bring GRAMMY® Museum Mississippi to Cleveland.”
"GRAMMY® Museum Mississippi represents not only a fantastic cultural attraction for our state, highlighting Mississippi’s amazing contribution to American music, but it will offer the next generation of young music industry professionals an exciting entry point into today’s music industry,” said Walker. “The GRAMMY brand is a worldwide brand, it has the power to open a lot of doors and opportunities for our students.”
For information about GRAMMY® Museum Mississippi or the Delta Music Institute, contact the DMI office at (662) 846-4579 or dmi@deltastate.edu
Manu Lanvin in Kossman’s 1972 LeMans convertible at historic Dockery Farms, known around the world as the birthplace of the Blues.
The Delta Center for Culture and Learning at Delta State University recently helped French Blues singer Manu Lanvin film a music video for his latest release "Sur la route sixty one" ( On Highway 61). Manu (who goes by his first name) and his producer/photographer, Alexandre Villeret, spent over a week filming in the Delta. Highlights of their visit included an evening of live Blues at historic Po’ Monkey’s Lounge, during which Manu performed with Mississippi’s own Terry “Harmonica” Bean. Bean has recently toured in France, and also been featured in the French Blues Magazine called “Blues” as well as in Living Blues Magazine. Kossman’s automotive, in Cleveland, provided access to their 1972 LeMans convertible, which appears in the music video.
