Delta Center attends Alliance of National Heritage Areas meeting

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Dr. Rolando Herts, director of the Delta Center for Culture and Learning and the Mississippi Delta National Heritage area, joined fellow members of the Alliance of National Heritage Areas at their Spring Meeting in Alaska.

Dr. Rolando Herts, director of the Delta Center for Culture and Learning and the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area (MDNHA), recently attended the spring meeting of the Alliance of National Heritage Areas. The meeting was hosted by the Kenai Mountains – Turnagain Arm National Heritage Area in Alaska.

Leaders of various National Heritage Areas gathered at Our Lady of the Snows Chapel in Girdwood, Ala. to discuss advocacy, preservation, program development and promotion, and quality of life improvement opportunities for their respective regions. Major topics included effective partnerships for commemorating the National Park Service 2016 Centennial and the creation of a National Heritage Areas system through U.S. Congress.

“The Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area took the lead on commemorating the National Park Service Centennial during the 2015 Winning the Race Conference at Delta State,” said Herts. “The Delta Center and the MDNHA partnered with the conference and the National Park Service to sponsor an opening reception that welcomed over 200 guests from throughout the Mississippi Delta region and beyond.”

Learn more about the reception at http://www.deltastate.edu/news-and-events/mdnha-to-host-winning-the-race-reception.

During the Alaska meeting, Herts shared the importance of collaborating with National Park Service regional representatives to help stage impactful centennial programming.

The event featured remarks from former National Park Service director, Bob Stanton and Bill Justice, acting superintendent of Vicksburg National Military Park. The BB King All Stars Choir performed, a group that is comprised of musically talented youth from throughout the Mississippi Delta. 

At the MDNHA Opening Reception during Delta State’s Winning the Race Conference (left to right): Bill Justice, Herts and Bob Stanton.

In keeping with the centennial’s goal of creating the next generation of park visitors, supporters and advocates, the MDNHA worked with Mayor Johnnie Thomas of Glendora, Miss. Through sponsorship from Eastern National, a not-for-profit cooperating association that supports the National Park Service, Thomas brought over 50 high school students from West Tallahatchie Consolidated School District to the reception. Tallahatchie County is one of the most impoverished in the Delta region, with over 90 percent of West Tallahatchie High School students coming from low income households.

While in Alaska, Herts also shared how the MDNHA has collaborated with the NPS and other Heritage Area representatives to conduct research that illuminates Mississippi’s status as a leading National Heritage Areas state. The Mississippi Delta, Hills and Gulf Coast National Heritage Areas combined cover nearly 60 percent of the state. Second only to Tennessee, Mississippi has the highest percentage of National Heritage Area designated land mass in the United States.

“It is important for our congressional representatives to know that Mississippi is a National Heritage Areas leader,” said Herts. “This makes the protection of our Heritage Areas a priority. It is in Mississippi’s best interest. Our Heritage Areas promote tourism, economic development,and broader understanding of the value of cultural heritage throughout our state.”

Herts with Brenda Barrett.

Alliance members also participated in experiential learning tours throughout the Kenai Mountains – Turnagain Arm National Heritage Area. The tours highlighted rail and water transportation, natural landscapes and community histories. They also visited the Alaska Wildlife Education Center, where Brenda Barrett, editor of Living Landscape Observer and former national coordinator for Heritage Areas with the NPS, presented on opportunities to connect with landscape conservation efforts nationwide.

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The Alliance of National Heritage Areas is a membership organization of the congressionally designated National Heritage Areas committed to raising awareness among the administration, Congress, its partners and the public, of the benefits of National Heritage Areas to the public sector and private citizens and fostering educational opportunities and partnerships among organizations in the heritage development field. For more information, visithttp://www.nationalheritageareas.us/index.html.

The MDNHA is a partnership between the people of the Mississippi Delta and the NPS. The MDNHA was designated by U.S. Congress in 2009 and is governed by a board of directors representing agencies and organizations defined in the Congressional legislation. More information about the MDNHA, including the complete approved management plan, is available at www.msdeltaheritage.com.

The mission of The Delta Center is to promote greater understanding of Mississippi Delta culture and history and its significance to the world through education, partnerships and community engagement. The Delta Center serves as the management entity of the MDNHA and is the home of the International Delta Blues Project. For more information, visit http://www.deltastate.edu/academics/delta-center-for-culture-and-learning/.

Delta Center speaks to Leland Rotary

Delta Center staff establish one of the new locations participating in the MDNHA Passport Program.

The Delta Center for Culture and Learning was recently asked to be a guest at the Leland Rotary Club. Dr. Rolando Herts, director of the Delta Center and the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area, gave the audience an update on the MDNHA and its new Passport Program.

Delta Center staff members Lee Aylward and Heather Miller briefed the group on how the MDNHA Passport Program is working to bring tourists to the Delta region.

The Delta Center then delivered passport stations to two Leland locations that have elected to take part in the program — the Kermit the Frog Museum and the Highway 61 Blues Museum.

The MDNHA sponsored the initial placement of one passport station in each of the Delta’s 18 counties. In Washington County, where Leland is located, the first passport was placed at the Washington County Convention and Visitors Bureau. Leland is the first municipality in the Delta to sponsor its own participation in the program by purchasing passport stations.

“The Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area is pleased that Leland has taken the initiative to sponsor passport stations in their community through these iconic museums,” said Herts. “All MDNHA municipalities have the same opportunity to participate in the Passport Program. When done in a strategic way, participation in the program can encourage increased visitor activity, including local dining and shopping, as well as positive word of mouth about community attractions.”

Photos of the Leland passport stations will be included on the official list of MDNHA Passport Program locations, available at http://www.msdeltaheritage.com/ms-delta-national-heritage-area-mdnha-passport/.

Delta-based municipalities, businesses, cultural attractions, heritage sites, or other organizations that are interested in participating in the Passport Program should contact The Delta Center regarding the application process. For more information, call 662-846-4311 or email Heather Miller at hmiller@deltastate.edu.

B.B. King AllStar Choir to perform at Winning the Race

The B.B. King AllStar Choir will perform at the opening reception of the Winning the Race conference March 30 at 5:30 p.m. in the Bologna Performing Arts Center.

The B.B. King AllStar Choir will perform at the opening reception of the Winning the Race conference at Delta State University March 30. The reception takes place at the Bologna Performing Arts Center at 5:30 pm.

The opening event is sponsored by the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area, The Delta Center for Culture and Learning, Vicksburg National Military Park and Eastern National for the National Park Service Centennial. The event will also feature special guest Robert Stanton, former director of the National Park Service. It will be free and open to the public.

The choir, which was founded in 2013, is sponsored by the B.B. King Museum and Delta Interpretive Center in Indianola. It is comprised of musically gifted youth grades six through twelve. They are selected by audition from communities throughout the Delta region, including Greenwood, Indianola, Cleveland, Boyle and Ruleville. 

“It has been a privilege and a joy to work with such talented, enthusiastic young singers,” said Dr. Cheryl L. Weiss, choir director. “We are pleased to be working with the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area to showcase some of the best and brightest young musicians that our region has to offer.”

The choir was one of only nine youth choirs selected to perform at the Crescent City Choral Festival in New Orleans. They also have sung for Governor Phil Bryant and other prominent Mississippi Politicians at the Delta Council Meeting, the WABG-TV March of Dimes Telethon and in a private concert for B.B. King. This spring they will sing the National Anthem for the Mississippi Braves baseball team and be featured at the Little Walter Music Festival in Alexandria, La.

Follow all Winning the Race conference updates at http://www.deltastate.edu/president/winning-the-race/.

The MDNHA is a partnership between the people of the Mississippi Delta and the National Park Service. The MDNHA was designated by U.S. Congress in 2009 and is governed by a board of directors representing agencies and organizations defined in the Congressional legislation. More information about the MDNHA, including the complete approved management plan, is available at www.msdeltaheritage.com. 

The mission of The Delta Center is to promote greater understanding of Mississippi Delta culture and history and its significance to the world through education, partnerships and community engagement. The Delta Center serves as the management entity of the MDNHA and is the home of the International Delta Blues Project. For more information, visit http://www.deltastate.edu/academics/delta-center-for-culture-and-learning/.

Delta Center hosts Lehrhaus Judaica

The Delta Center for Culture and Learning recently hosted "Jews, Blues, and Jazz Tour" from Lehrhous Judaica of Berkeley, Calif.

The Delta Center for Culture and Learning recently conducted a day-long learning experience for Lehrhaus Judaica from Berkeley, Calif. 

The 33-person tour from the Bay Area was billed as “Jews, Blues, and Jazz,” and the group was on its way from Memphis to New Orleans, with stops in Cleveland, Greenwood, and Natchez.

The tour was led by Fred Rosenbaum, an educator and historian who founded the organization in 1974. Rosenbaum has been a faculty member at the University of San Francisco, San Francisco State University and the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, where for five years he taught a semester-long course on the Holocaust to Christian seminarians.

Rosenbaum has lectured across the United States and abroad and has been the traveling scholar on numerous Lehrhaus-JCCSF study tours — to Eastern and Western Europe, Israel and the Middle East, South America and Cuba, and his native New York.

The Delta Center’s Lee Aylward introduced the group to the area, many on their first trip to the region. This was the group’s second year to visit the Delta.

Learn more about the group at www.lehrhaus.org.

Fred Rosenbaum (left), traveling scholar; Lee Aylward, the Delta Center; Vernita Lyons, tour coordinator; and Ariel Goldstein, tour director.

The mission of the Delta Center is to promote greater understanding of Mississippi Delta culture and history and its significance to the world through education, partnerships and community engagement. The Delta Center serves as the management entity of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area and is the home of the International Delta Blues Project. For more information, visit http://www.deltastate.edu/academics/delta-center-for-culture-and-learning/.

Delta Center hosts Hillel Group

The Delta Center for Culture and Learning's Lee Aylward, center, recently provided a tour to the Hillel Group from the University of Maryland.

The Hillel Group from the University of Maryland was recently in the Delta on an alternative spring break trip. The group made a stop at Delta State University to be introduced to the Mississippi Delta. The Delta Center for Culture and Learning’s Lee Aylward provided the group an overview of the Delta and university while taking them to visit heritage sites.

During their visit, the group met at Temple Adath Israel in Cleveland and enjoyed an evening meal with the congregation. Temple Israel is a Reform Jewish synagogue in Cleveland that was organized in 1923.

The Mission of the Maryland Hillel group is to enhance the lives of Jewish undergraduate and graduate students so that they may enrich the Jewish people and the world. Hillel actively seeks to engage uninvolved Jewish students on their own terms and to provide them with Jewish opportunities that are meaningful and appealing to them. Students are empowered to take responsibility for their Jewish identity, whether they wish to participate in a community service project, express themselves artistically, participate in a social event, engage in informal Jewish learning or attend religious services. Any student may participate with Hillel – no membership is required. Hillel is committed to a pluralistic vision of Judaism that embraces all movements. 

The mission of The Delta Center is to promote greater understanding of Mississippi Delta culture and history and its significance to the world through education, partnerships and community engagement. The Delta Center serves as the management entity of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area and is the home of the International Delta Blues Project. For more information, visit http://www.deltastate.edu/academics/delta-center-for-culture-and-learning/.

Delta Center provides Emory University of Atlanta a learning tour

Dr. Rolando Herts provided students from Emory University of Atlanta an overview of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage area.

The Delta Center for Culture and Learning at Delta State University hosted Emory University of Atlanta for an experiential learning tour of the Mississippi Delta region.

Lee Aylward, program associate for education and community outreach for The Delta Center, provided an introduction of Delta history to the group, and Director Dr. Rolando Herts provided an overview of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area.

The group traveled throughout the week around the Delta experiencing cultural heritage sites. The mission of The Delta Center is to promote greater understanding of Mississippi Delta culture and history and its significance to the world through education, partnerships and community engagement. The Delta Center serves as the management entity of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area and is the home of the International Delta Blues Project.

For more information, visit www.deltastate.edu/academics/delta-center-for-culture-and-learning.

Delta Center hosts Hillel Jewish group

Lee Aylward (second from right) of the Delta Center for Culture and Learning recently hosted a tour for the Hillel Jewish student group from the University of Virginia. They visited various Delta sites, including the "Cast of Blues," a collection of 54 blues masks found in the lobby of Ewing Hall at Delta State.

The Delta Center for Culture and Learning at Delta State University recently hosted members of the Hillel Jewish student group at the University of Virginia.

Hillel is the largest Jewish student organization in the world. By participating in life-changing trips and campus initiatives, students learn to make a meaningful impact on the future of people and the world while they grow intellectually, socially, and spiritually.

The Delta Center’s Lee Aylward provided a Delta tour to significant sites in the Delta, and director Dr. Rolando Herts gave them an overview of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area.

The group will spend time throughout the Delta for a week conducting service projects and learning about the different communities. 

The mission of The Delta Center is to promote greater understanding of Mississippi Delta culture and history and its significance to the world through education, partnerships and community engagement. The Delta Center serves as the management entity of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area and is the home of the International Delta Blues Project. For more information, visit http://www.deltastate.edu/academics/delta-center-for-culture-and-learning/.

Delta Center tours with Mississippi State students

The Delta Center for Culture and Learning at Delta State University recently provided an experiential learning tour to Mississippi State University's Alternative Spring Break group.

The Delta Center for Culture and Learning at Delta State University recently provided an experiential learning tour of the Mississippi Delta region to Mississippi State University’s Alternative Spring Break group, which is sponsored by the Office of Student Leadership and Community Engagement at MSU.

The group was led by student volunteers and were housed for the week at the North Greenwood Baptist Church. They were treated to an introduction to Delta history by the Delta Center’s Lee Aylward.

Delta Center director Dr. Rolando Herts provided an overview of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area. The group travelled throughout the week around the Delta experiencing cultural heritage sites, agricultural sites and educational groups.

The group spent their evenings watching movies about the Delta and reflecting on lessons learned throughout the day.

The mission of The Delta Center is to promote greater understanding of Mississippi Delta culture and history and its significance to the world through education, partnerships and community engagement. The Delta Center serves as the management entity of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area and is the home of the International Delta Blues Project. For more information, visit http://www.deltastate.edu/academics/delta-center-for-culture-and-learning.

MDNHA updates provided in Greenwood

Dr. Rolando Herts (left to right), director of the Delta Center for Culture and Learning and the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area, recently met with Cheryl Taylor, executive director, Museum of the Mississippi Delta; Tonja Ray Smith, executive director, Greenwood Convention & Visitors Bureau; and Luther Wade, president, Greenwood Rotary Club.

Dr. Rolando Herts, director of the Delta Center for Culture and Learning and the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area (MDNHA), visited Greenwood recently to share updates on the implementation of the MDNHA Management Plan. The visit included a tour of the Museum of the Mississippi Delta to discuss their renovation plans and a presentation to the Greenwood Rotary Club.

Cheryl Taylor, executive director of the Museum of the Mississippi Delta, gave Herts a tour of the museum, which is scheduled to reopen in May. Taylor will use the MDNHA Management Plan to help guide the creation of new exhibits that will interpret the history of the Mississippi Delta. 

“We are excited to learn about the museum’s plans to incorporate our five cultural heritage themes,” said Herts. “The Management Plan was written as a resource for the people of the Mississippi Delta, particularly for cultural programming that stimulates tourism in the region and promotes local education and pride of place. By doing this, the Museum of the Mississippi Delta not only will be fulfilling its mission, but it also will be demonstrating how our institutions and citizens can actively engage with the Heritage Area.”

The MDNHA’s five cultural heritage themes are: (1) The Mississippi Delta and the Land It Embraces; (2) The Culture of the Blues and the Birth of an American Sound; (3) Moving Toward Freedom: Changing America’s Character in the Struggle for Rights; (4) Growing More than Cotton: The Delta as a Wellspring of Creativity; and (5) The Delta Divide: Creating the Delta’s Diverse Communities. 

“The Museum of the Mississippi Delta sees the importance of telling the Delta’s story comprehensively and inclusively,” said Taylor, “We can achieve this by interpreting Heritage Area themes in our new exhibits. The Museum is well known for its extensive Native American collection, as well as military and agricultural artifacts and Mississippi artwork. We look forward to using our collections to create innovative exhibits centered on the MDNHA themes.” 

After touring the museum, Herts spoke at the Greenwood Rotary Club. The presentation included an overview of the Delta Center’s role as MDNHA’s management entity, as well as the MDNHA’s goals and themes. Herts also discussed recent expansion of the MDNHA Passport Program throughout the 18-county region. The Greenwood Convention and Visitors Bureau serves as the passport stamp location for Leflore County. 

“The Greenwood CVB is pleased to collaborate with the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area Passport Program,” said Tonja Ray Smith, CVB executive director, “By hosting the passport for Leflore County, we will welcome travelers to our community, direct them to area attractions like the Museum of the Mississippi Delta, and encourage them to visit other destinations throughout the Mississippi Delta that will educate tourists about the national significance of the Delta’s culture.” 

Herts also highlighted upcoming partnership events that promote MDNHA cultural heritage themes. These events include the opening reception of the Winning the Race diversity conference at Delta State University scheduled for March 30, which will provide Delta residents and visitors an opportunity to meet Robert Stanton, the first African American director of the National Park Service. The MDNHA will also be hosting Delta Jewels Community Gatherings featuring journalism professor, Alysia Burton Steele, and her new book of photography and oral histories on African American church mothers from the Delta. The gatherings will take place in municipalities across the region, including Clarksdale, Charleston, Ruleville, Indianola and Yazoo City.

The MDNHA is a partnership between the people of the Mississippi Delta and the National Park Service. The MDNHA was designated by U.S. Congress in 2009 and is governed by a board of directors representing agencies and organizations defined in the Congressional legislation. More information about the MDNHA, including the complete approved management plan, is available at www.msdeltaheritage.com.

The mission of the Delta Center is to promote greater understanding of Mississippi Delta culture and history and its significance to the world through education, partnerships and community engagement. The Delta Center serves as the management entity of the MDNHA and is the home of the International Delta Blues Project. For more information, visit http://www.deltastate.edu/academics/delta-center-for-culture-and-learning/.

Dr. Herts meets with Roger Wicker

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Dr. Rolando Herts was honored to meet Senator Roger Wicker this week during the Alliance of National Heritage Areas meeting in Washington, D.C. Senator Wicker, Senator Thad Cochran, and Congressman Bennie Thompson all are strong supporters of the National Heritage Areas movement, particularly the Mississippi Delta and Mississippi Hills National Heritage Areas since their designation in 2009. The Delta Center at Delta State University is the management entity for the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area.

To learn more, visithttp://www.wicker.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=dbb24d59-b5b8-ece9-74ba-0440b90dd769 andhttp://www.cochran.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/in-the-news?ID=7353331e-7eae-4bd1-b03f-8c5c3fe2088e.