WASHINGTON – Eight Howard University alumni will speak at the Association of African American Museums 41st Annual Conference scheduled August 7-10 in Jackson, Mississippi. The theme of the conference is Roots of Revolution: Reaching Back, Pushing Forward, which signifies “a chance to usefully look to our shared past to inform and empower the crafting of our futures amid challenging times.”

The alumni, Vedet R. Coleman-Robinson, Joy Kinard, Ph.D., Eola Dance, Kenvi Phillips, Ph.D., Lopez Matthews, Ph.D., Noelle Trent, Ph.D., and Ashley Jordan, Ph.D., have matriculated through the more than 20-year-old public history program hosted by the Department of History at Howard University. The panel is moderated by Dennis A. Doster, Ph.D., black history program manager at the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission of the Department of Parks and Recreation in Prince George's County. It will highlight the impact that Howard’s public history program has had on their lives and careers, their experiences as students, the lifeline of mentors in their careers, and how they pay it forward now.

Coleman-Robinson is the newly appointed executive director of the Association of African American Museums.

“This year, the Association of African American Museums is celebrating 41 years of existence. It is because of the work of our founders, staunch supporters, long-time members, and loyal colleagues in the field that we have been able to thrive this long,” says Coleman-Robinson. “I feel that our panel is a culmination of the dedication, hard work, and solid foundation that we all learned through the teachings that the Public History Program provided. If it weren't for Howard University, many of us would not have been introduced to AAAM, and we absolutely wouldn’t be able to continue the organization's strong legacy since its inception.”

She credits her training at Howard for preparing her and her fellow colleagues for this chosen field. Much like Coleman-Robinson, Lopez Matthews, Ph.D., the digital production librarian and history subject specialist at Howard University, expressed his appreciation for the public history program too.

“The program provided us with everything we needed to be successful at sharing history to the masses, including a network of scholars in the field to help promote and support topics related to African Americans in history,” said Matthews.

The panelists include:

• Vedet R. Coleman-Robinson, executive director, Association of African American Museums
• Joy Kinard, Ph.D., superintendent, Charles Young Home and Buffalo Soldiers Monument, National Park Service
• Eola Dance, chief of resource management, Colonial National Park, National Park Service
• Kenvi Phillips, curator for Race and Ethnicity Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study Harvard University
• Lopez Matthews, Ph.D., digital production librarian and history subject specialist, Howard University
• Noelle Trent, Ph.D., director of Interpretation, Collections, and Education, National Civil Rights Museum
• Ashley Jordan, Ph.D., executive director, Evansville African American Museum 

According to the Association of African American Museums press release, the conference will focus on the reach and the push requisite in leading people developing systems, improving organizations, protecting collections, and impacting futures through the preservation of African American art, history and culture. We will explore how technologies can extend institutions’ capacities to make their collections and programs more accessible to users and the necessity of collaboration in a revolutionary digital age.

To learn more, visit: blackmuseums.org/2019-conference/

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About the Association of African American Museums

The Association of African American Museums (AAAM) is a non-profit member organization established to support African and African American focused museums nationally and internationally, as well as the professionals who protect, preserve and interpret African and African American art, history and culture. Established as the single representative and principal voice of the African American museum movement, the Association seeks to strengthen and advocate for the interests of institutions and individuals committed to the preservation of African-derived cultures. The services provided by AAAM enhance the ability of those museums to serve the needs and interests of persons of African ancestry and those who wish to know more about the art, history and culture of African-derived cultures. To learn more, visit https://blackmuseums.org

About Howard University

Founded in 1867, Howard University is a private, research university that is comprised of 13 schools and colleges. Students pursue studies in more than 120 areas leading to undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. The University operates with a commitment to Excellence in Truth and Service and has produced four Rhodes Scholars, 11 Truman Scholars, two Marshall Scholars, one Schwarzman Scholar, over 70 Fulbright Scholars and 22 Pickering Fellows. Howard also produces more on-campus African-American Ph.D. recipients than any other university in the United States.  For more information on Howard University visit www.howard.edu

Media Contact: Imani Pope-Johns, Imani.popejohns@howard.edu