Historic Preservation Workshops Planned for May 5
JONESBORO – The West End Neighborhood Association and Heritage Studies PhD Program at Arkansas State University are partnering to offer workshops on historic preservation in Craighead County. The events will be held Saturday, May 5, in the Round Room of the Craighead County-Jonesboro Public Library, 315 West Oak Ave.
Participants may attend either a morning or an afternoon session. The first workshop is 10 a.m.-noon, and the second will run 1-3 p.m.
Between the sessions, Arkansas Department of Heritage representatives will give a keynote presentation at noon. This is open for all, including those who cannot attend either the morning or afternoon activities.
All sessions are free and open to the public. Pre-registration is recommended but not required.
Led by A-State historic preservationist Dr. Edward Salo, each session will introduce relevant ideas about historic preservation and spotlight both existing and potential historic resources in Craighead County. Workshop organizers will provide the context for preserving historic buildings, as well as resources for integrating the intangible elements of heritage into the wider idea of cultural conservation.
The workshop will provide examples of the great variety of historic buildings in Jonesboro and Craighead County, and the event’s coordinators will give practical guidance for preparing applications to both the state and national registers for historic preservation.
The noontime presentation by the Arkansas Department of Heritage will be the day’s capstone. Historic preservation staff from Little Rock will provide an overview of this department’s resources and offer assistance to groups and individuals who are interested in preservation. The event is also designed to connect doctoral students in the A-State heritage studies doctoral program with community members.
Salo noted, “Our students will be completing projects in the upcoming year to make Jonesboro a better place and to preserve those places that make Jonesboro unique. Preservation is not limited to pretty mansions. We are looking to preserve places that tell the stories of our past and keep them around for future generations, so they can also learn these stories.”
Residents who are in the process of preparing an application for either the state or national register are especially invited to attend. Following the afternoon session, those with specific questions about their applications will have the opportunity to meet with the event coordinators.
Jeff Ransone, outgoing president of the co-sponsoring West End Neighborhood Association, explained that this workshop is one of the many activities that the neighborhood group has developed to provide resources to residents of Craighead County who wish to support preservationist efforts in the community.
He added that he is especially pleased to have the neighborhood association work with the university’s heritage studies PhD program because Salo and his colleagues and students have so much to offer the wider community through their applied research projects and in their service-learning approaches to education.
For more details, one may contact Dr. Gregory Hansen at ghansen@AState.edu or call (870) 972-3043.
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