Journey Through Hallowed Ground Partnership's Annual Conference

Journey Through Hallowed Ground Partnership's 8th Annual Conference

The Journey Through Hallowed Ground Partnership's Eighth Annual Conference is scheduled to take place May 20-21 at the University of Virginia'a Academical Village, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The conference is co-presented in collaboration with Preserve America, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP), and the National Park Service (NPS) and provides attendees the opportunity to attend educational workshops on various topics, including: engaging youth/students in our collective national history, economic trends in heritage tourism, grant writing and fundraising, African-American and other minority heritage, sustainable local agriculture, and more.

Kerry Kennedy, the President of the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights, will serve as one of the keynote speakers at the conference. Ms. Kennedy started working in the field of human rights in 1981 and since then, her life has been devoted to the pursuit of justice, to the promotion and protection of basic rights, and to the preservation of the rule of law. She established the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Human Rights in 1988 and has led over 50 human rights delegations across the globe. Kennedy is also the founder of Speak Truth to Power, a global education initiative, and founded RFK Compass in 2010. She is the Chair of the Amnesty International USA Leadership Council and serves on the boards of directors of Human Rights First, Inter- Press Service and the United States Institute for Peace. Kennedy will discuss the importance of taking an active role in leadership, education and standing up for your beliefs.

Kennedy's remarks will tie in with the world premiere of vodcasts created by Orange County Public School students through the Journey Through Hallowed Ground Partnership's Of the Student, By the Student, For the Student® project. Over the past academic year, this award-winning program has been engaging these middle-school students in interpreting the history within their own backyards. Students used primary source documents, humanities scholarship, the arts, dramatic readings, role-playing and digital technology to create vodcasts, or mini-movies, in collaboration with Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park to commemorate the sesquicentennial of the Battle of The Wilderness.

Other conference speakers include Architectural Conservator W. Brown Morton III, who wrote and will be reflecting on the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, and Pacolet South Carolina Mayor Elaine Harris will discuss how a small town worked towards community revitalization. David Neuman, the architect at the University of Virginia, will discuss maintaining an active world heritage site.

In addition, a Presidential Heritage Field Session is being offered, providing attendees with a behind-the-scenes tour of historic sites around Charlottesville, particularly Monticello and Ash Lawn-Highland, capping off the special evening with dinner at Michie Tavern. An awards luncheon will take place on May 21, with annual awards presented to the Cornelia Keller Champion of the Year, Volunteer of the Year, Corporate Partner of the Year, and Certified Tourism Ambassador of the Year. Special walking tours of the University of Virginia will be offered.

The conference is geared towards a variety of individuals, including economic development and tourism professionals, urban professional planners, attraction and museum staff, elected officials, historians, National Park Service employees, educators, Certified Tourism Ambassadors, and other engaged citizens. Certification maintenance credits offered through the American Institute of Certified Planners are available for eligible and interested attendees.

Schedule At a Glance

Conference sponsors include the National Park Service, Preserve America, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, America Comes Alive with Kate Kelly, the Civil War Trust, Middleburg Bank, Certified Tourism Ambassador Program, Ancestry.com, and Updegrove, Combs, and McDaniel, PLC.