FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Contact: Dave Wellman, Director of Communications, (304) 696-7153
 

Marshall hosts annual Appalachian Studies Association Conference

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – The Appalachian Studies Association (ASA) will hold its annual conference, “The Road Ahead: The Next Thirty Years of Appalachian Studies,” on Marshall University’s Huntington campus the weekend of March 28-30.

The conference is for anyone interested in Appalachia, including community members, students, artists, professionals and teachers, and is based out of the Memorial Student Center. Sessions also will take place in Corbly Hall and Drinko Library.

“Our conference theme challenges us to become a more forward-looking organization, one that lives up to its principles of democratic engagement, environmental and organizational sustainability, and welcoming inclusion,” said ASA President Shaunna Scott,  a sociology professor at the University of Kentucky.   

Marshall has hosted ASA’s national headquarters since 2001. ASA and its members take pride in their unique passion to support Appalachian research and creativity, and encourage engaging dialogue and change in order to confirm Appalachia’s positive reputation locally, nationally and internationally.

The conference directly reflects ASA’s mission – to support Appalachian research and creativity, participate in engaging dialogues and propose change.  “We hope that you all will attend the conference and bring your GPS device because we need your help in plotting our course on ‘down the road,’ ” Scott said.  

From Friday through Sunday, 117 sessions will be held to discuss Appalachian topics such as identity, diversity, coal and education (to name only a few). These sessions have goals that include shedding the “hillbilly” reputation, revealing the complexity of the coal industry, and discussing diverse teaching techniques in Appalachian schools. 

In keeping with the theme of the conference, many sessions are dedicated to inter-generational dialogue.

The Friday night highlights include Silas House delivering the keynote speech. House is a renowned Kentucky author of the novels Clay’s Quilt (2001), A Parchment of Leaves (2002) and The Coal Tattoo (2004), and the play The Hurting Part (2005). House also is a member of Public Outcry, a band performing at the conference to inform people about effects of mountaintop removal. 

Musical events at the conference are free and open to the public.  Along with Public Outcry (musicians from Kentucky), Dave Haas and Katie Stricker (two West Virginian dulcimer players) and Killer Panther (a punk band from Eastern Kentucky) will be performing at 8 p.m. Friday.  Saturday night entertainment includes music by Bernard Cyrus, an old-time banjo and fiddle player, and Tim and Dave Bing, fiddle and banjo players who will perform their “Mountain Roots in the Big Sandy” at 8 p.m. Both events take place at Marshall University’s Smith Recital Hall.

In addition, more than 60 booths will be exhibiting books and crafts from around the nation in the basement of the Memorial Student Center (Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday, 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 5 p.m., and Sunday 8 to 11 a.m.).  From 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Saturday, presses and authors from around the nation will hold book signings in the Memorial Student Center. The public is invited.

The conference will conclude Sunday with a discussion, led by Machlyn Blair, about how the youth of the mountains see their future.

Late/on-site registration is available for the registration fee of $130, or $80 for students. Registration begins at 9 a.m. Friday, March 28, in the basement of the Memorial Student Center and ends at 5:45 p.m. Saturday registration begins at 8 a.m. and ends at 5:45 p.m.

For further details, see www.appalachianstudies.org/conference or contact Chris Green at (304) 696-6269.

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